Scientists can argue as much as they want about whether animals have real feelings or
not.
But any pet owner will know that they’re not just perfectly capable of expressing emotions
- like greeting you excitedly when you get home, or comforting you when you’re sad
- they’re actually so overdramatic that any one of them could compete with some of
Hollywood's greatest stars.
Let’s get it on!
There’s no shortage of examples of people fainting in movies, but in real life you don’t
often see a real fainting spell.
Not unless you own a goat anyway.
This specific breed of goat faints all the time - so often in fact, that they’re now
called Tennessee Fainting Goats.
Whenever they’re startled, all their limbs go stiff and they fall over, which is probably
not the best way of avoiding the thing that gave them a scare.
But even if it’s not helpful to them, it’s very entertaining for us.
We can all sympathise with irrational fears.
You know you’re not in danger, but sometimes you just can’t help but be terrified.
This pug has found his phobia - he just can’t handle having its nails trimmed.
No matter how insistent his owner is that everything’s going to be fine, this dog
is just not able to accept that fact.
You can bet it goes through this process every single time.
And you can bet that his owner's laughter during all of this definitely doesn't help.
Some people know how to cause a scene from the moment of birth.
Turns out that’s true for baby animals too.
You either have it or you don’t, and this kittens definitely got it.
It can shout loud enough to get everyone’s attention.
It can perfectly play a damsel in distress, trapped in it’s tower.
And it knows how to fall around more dramatically than any human could.
And when its worried parents arrive to help, it even takes the time to try and smack one
of them in the face.
Ice cream is one of those treats that gives everyone the same sense of joy, whether you’re
an adult or a child.
But what if you’re a cat?
Well this cat owner decided to find out if his cat likes a lick of ice cream.
The cat seemed pretty happy to give it a try.
But the reaction is something that nobody could’ve expected.
This is probably the best example of brain freeze if I've ever seen one.
Have you ever wondered why it’s only dog owners that are seen out and about with their
furry friends?
There’s a very good answer to that question.
Have a look at what happens when this cat owner tries to put a leash on their cat and
take it for a walk.
If it weren’t for the angrily flicking tail, you’d never know that cat was still alive.
And there’s nothing the owner can do to get it to move.
It gets dragged, stood up, stroked, nothing works - except taking the harness off, of
course.
We all know who man’s best friend is, but have you ever wondered why dogs love us so
much?
Maybe it’s because some dogs really don’t like other dogs.
After all, the breed of dog really does determine their personality, and some personalities
will clash… or at least, get very annoyed when faced with a different breed.
Especially if that breed is a husky who loves singing.
At least now we know - if you like to sing, you’ll find that a husky is a great karaoke
partner.
There are a handful of young actors in the history of cinema that could out-perform any
adult.
It proves that no matter how old you are, you can be a genius in your field.
But it’s also true that animals can beat children to an Oscar.
Look at the difference in the quality of performance between this boy and that cat.
The boy can’t even stop smiling long enough to fall over properly.
But that cat even takes the time to look nonchalant before acting flawlessly - someone should
cast it in a western right away.
Anyone can get wrapped up in the excitement of live sports, but we all know that one person
who gets just a little more into it than everyone else.
Well sometimes that person isn’t even a person.
This dog’s reaction to a goal could rival any overly-emotional sports fan.
He was so on the edge of his seat that he literally ended up on the floor.
Everyone loves a cuddle every now and then.
The problem is that some people don’t know when to stop.
This doggo doesn’t take no for an answer, and he has the skills to make that very obvious.
He’s mastered the horror movie eyes better than anyone I’ve ever seen.
He even forces his humans hand back onto him all in the name of a little bit more petting.
At least he knows what he wants.
Cats are masters of two very key skills: drama and staring.
So when two actual cats get together for a cat fight, you often get something that looks
more like this: a lot of falling over, a lot of staring, and a slow realisation that they
don’t know how to get out of this.
We’ve all had at least one moment in our lives where we’ve created our own problems.
Here’s a husky puppy to tell you all about the feelings you go through when that happens.
Alright I know what you’re thinking: I’m being harsh by blaming that puppy for getting
its head stuck in the hole, it didn’t know that would happen right?
Wrong.
Firstly, it’s not really stuck.
Second, it keeps going back for more.
You know you’re dramatic when you have to fake accidents just to have something to shout
about.
Some people believe that you can only achieve real happiness if you find joy in the little
things in life.
If that’s true, then this dog must be the happiest thing on earth.
In case you’re wondering what that thing is that’s made that dog so excited - it’s
a clam..
Nothing has ever got more enjoyment out of anything than this dog is getting from its
newly discovered clam friend.
You have to wonder how long that bounding around went on for.
Let’s face it, we’re all obsessed with food.
Sometimes you even catch yourself thinking about what you can eat while you’re busy
eating.
But we’re not the only ones - animals also live for the moment they get fed again.
But you need to be on high-alert if you’re a cat, because sleeping all the time can mean
you miss out on something delicious.
Which is probably why this cat has trained itself to wake up instantly at the slightest
chance that there might be food around.
Wish I had that skill.
Anyone with a child will know how important toys are.
But what you might not realise is that animals have the same kind of connection to their
toys, and they’re just as dramatic as human babies.
This dog is the perfect example of that.
All he did was drop his toy.
Sure he could’ve jumped down to get it, but he decided that a more appropriate reaction
would be to lie dramatically on the sofa and cry for ages.
Sometimes life is so boring that we spend our time pranking everyone around us for a
moment of entertainment.
But we might not be the only ones.
This cat decided that the best way to deal with conflict was to completely overreact
to being slapped.
It had a pretty good go at playing dead, I’m guessing either for a laugh or to make the
other cat feel bad.
Either way it didn’t work, the other cat just didn’t care.
Anyone who ever had a prank go wrong can sympathise with that kitty.
It's not a very good idea to walk on snow barefoot, and that applies for dogs too.
This dog owner got some shoes for their dog so it could play in the snow.
You’d expect a typical reaction - like the dog bounding out into the snow.
Instead, it decided to try out its shoes as though they were made for performing in a
circus.
We’ll never know why it thought that was an appropriate reaction, but it’s surprisingly
good at it.
Occasionally you’ll meet someone who can genuinely say they love exercising.
Most people however, would do anything in their power to avoid it.
It’s those people who will sympathise with this cat.
It’s incredibly round and clearly enjoys being fat, but its owner decided it needed
some treadmill exercise.
It didn’t agree.
But it also didn’t have much say in the matter either.
So what could it do to get out of going to the cat gym?
Just play dead...
It’s a pretty effective defence too - good luck getting a dead cat to go walkies.
Dog owners know for a fact that dogs respond very well to treats.
They’ll do just about anything for something vaguely yummy.
But what happens when a formidable foe stands between a chihuahua and its crunchy treat?
Well… a lot of snarling.
We’ll never know what this dog thinks this toy is, or why it hates it so much, but in
the end, nothing was going to stop it from getting that dog biscuit.
I have to say I’m on the dog’s side here - that thing is pretty creepy.
Some people just love attention, and they’ll go to incredible lengths to get it.
But it’s not only humans who know how to get all eyes on them.
This should have been a simple, or even dull moment - all the cat is actually doing is
walking into a room.
But it manages to turn that into a spectacular performance by shouting and falling over,
and then putting on a display of expertly coy eyelash fluttering at everyone who turned
to look.
It’s a world-class performance for sure.