The soldiers of the 101st Airborne, 159th Aviation Brigade found a newborn puppy on an Afghanistan battlefield — so they rescued the puppy, and made her a part of their brigade.

“It obviously had been abandoned. There was no mother around… It was very, very young, so if they would have left it there, it would have never made it,” said Teri Lemmons, mother of Army Cpl. Michael Lemmons.

Unfortunately, when the time came for the soldiers to return home, military law prevented the soldiers from bringing their beloved pet back with them on military planes. The cost of shipping the dog was more than $2500. Faced with the possibility of leaving her behind, the soldiers got creative.

The touching story was broadcast on the ABC News with Charles Gibson last week. Watch the video below to see how this shaggy dog story ends.

Here is an amazing video at YouTube that shows an elephant painting a portrait using its trunk to manipulate the brush. The pachyderm starts with a clean canvas, and finishes with what could be described as a self-portrait. Heck, it’s certainly better than anything I have painted recently!

You can watch another video of a baby elephant painting at this YouTube.com link.

It’s really amazing! This article at GreenMuze describes The Asian Elephant Art & Conservation Project (AEACP) was founded in 1997 as a unique charitable program developed to help raise awareness about the plight of endangered Asian elephants and to help make the lives of domesticated elephants a little better. The revenue generated from their paintings is used to care for the elephants and provide them with better food, improved shelter, and proper veterinary care. The AEACP has received attention and support from around the globe.  The AEACP’s work with elephants has been featured in the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Nation and Esquire, as well as featured on CBS Sunday Morning, the Lehrer NewsHour, and a substantial segment on 60 Minutes.

According to an article at the BBC news,  the giant mammals even had an exhibition of their paintings at an Edinburgh Gallery in 1996. According to Victoria Khunapramot, who imported the paintings from Thailand, “They are very intelligent animals and create the entire paintings with great gusto and concentration within just five or 10 minutes.

“They are trained by artists who fine-tune their skills, and they paint in front of an audience in their conservation village, leaving no one in any doubt that they are authentic elephant creations. The only thing they cannot do on their own is pick up a paintbrush, so it gets handed to them.” They are gently trained to paint abstract designs, flowers, and elephant portraits. » Read more

Kevin Richardson is an animal behaviorist who has built such a reputation for his amazing relationship with lions, that he has become known as “The Lion Whisperer.”

Once a student of human physiology, the 34-year-old has been working with animals for more than a dozen years now. Based out of a wildlife conservation area near Johannesburg in South Africa, Kevin has built such a strong relationship of trust with these fierce felines that he says he can even sleep with them without fear of mauling.

“I have to rely on my own instincts to gauge an animal or a situation, and I will not approach a creature if something doesn’t feel right,” he said in an interview at The Daily Mail.  “I don’t use sticks, whips or chains, just patience. It may be dangerous, but this is a passion for me, not a job.”

Kevin he says he feels the closest bond with the lions, sharing with them an amazing unconditional love that includes gentle caresses and exuberant play. This is a relationship that has been nurtured over time, and the magnificent animals greet him enthusiastically, welcoming him into their pride as if he were one of them. However, Kevin’s gentle talent extends to other animals such as cheetahs, leopards and hyenas, as well.

According to the article, “Kevin says he is most confident with animals he has known since birth, but claims he can become close friends with any lion less than a year old, when it is still flexible enough to accept him as part of its own pride.” That’s truly amazing! The animals feel so comfortable with him, that they even allow him to handle their newborn offspring.

It’s an unbelieveable and amazingly moving relationship that you have to see to truly understand. I hope you will enjoy the following video.

Brandy Schaffels, eCycleGroup Contributing Editor

I’ve grown up with both dogs and cats as pets, but it’s not a secret that I prefer cats for their day-to-day simplicity: Put out a bowl of crunchy food, clean the litter box every couple days, and if you’re lucky, they’ll let you pet them. It’s the perfect pet relationship!

But on the “so adorable you can hardly stand it” ratings scale, this roly poly French bulldog puppy wins the prize for its cuteness.

Now look, I don’t know whether this little guy just likes rolling around like this, or if he’s stuck on his back like a tipped-over turtle who can’t get right-side up again. Ours is not to wonder why: ours is just to keep saying “awwwww, ain’t that cute,” while we watch him rolling around.

Go ahead. I dare you to try watching it just once. I know you’ll replay it again and again and again and again and again and again…. He’s so cute, I just want to squish him in a giant bearhug of love.

Share it with your friends, and leave a comment would ya?

Ever have one of those days when it seems all your technology is working against you? Under a deadline and can’t make the printer work?

This calico cat seems to be having one of those days…