day three-hundred-and-thirty-five - flowerhorn fish

man there are some weird fish on this planet

© jem barratt

there are all kinds of flowerhorn fishies, rainbow ones, splotchy ones, and ones with lots o spots.

but don't get too attached - they are man-made hybrids and thus not found in nature and thus thus probably a cruel creation. indeed, they are susceptible to 'hole-in-head disease'. someone really could have named that better, come on.

deary me. humans are the worst.

xj

day one-hundred-and-sixty-one - bubble eye goldfish

a bubbly eye may look hilarious but i imagine it would be very uncomfortable...

© jem barratt

in fact, my fishy looks downright terrified. actually most of them do. not this coy fish though. and yes i mean coy, as in shy, not koi as in carp.

actually, the more i search these 'fancy' goldfish the worse i feel. don't get me wrong this is hilarious (and is obviously the lady of the species what with its red lips and titty bubbles), but i strongly suspect these guys have been bred for ridiculous looks like teacup pomeranians and mini pigs, and thus are very susceptible to death.

apparently most fish are known to tear open or eat the bubble eye's optical sacs. mmmmm.

but hey, what they lack in longevity and uninfected eyes they make for with an EXTRA TAIL! double tail action.

but but no. their swollen eye bubbles obscure their vision, and they can't be kept with other fish or rocks in case their wafer-thin eyes get all scratched up and pustular. looks are not the most important thing when it comes to pets people!

or are they? (no)

xj

day one-hundred-and-twenty-two - micro pig?

apparently this is a baby micro pig. now THAT is tiny:

© jem barratt

i don't really know what a micro pig is but i presume it is a pig that is bred to be extra tiny so as to also be extra cute. and thus, i presume, it probably has boned organs and such and dies early much like teacup pomeranians. now they are crazy cute, but crazy cruel - so one kind of cancels out the other.

with the interwebs at my fingertips i could actually look that up, but aren't presumptions just so much more fun!?

fine. i just looked it up, and i was right. if you breed an animal mainly for its looks there's a good chance of inbreeding, which means there's a good chance of depleted immune systems and sickly animals. no good.

if i were unethical i'd snatch me up so many teacup puppies - but ultimately it's terrible for the animals so no dice.

animals are cool as they are. just about anything can be cute in its own way - fat, wormy seals; scary-looking aye ayes; and even woolly bear caterpillars.

or maybe it's just me...
xj

day sixty-nine - pygmy slow loris

saaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaad. that's how you should feel about this guy:

© jem barratt

he may be smiling, but he is listed as vulnerable and is one of the targets of the illegal pet trade. if those IDIOTS that want primates as pets really love animals, they wouldn't perpetuate the trade.

sorry to be so righteous, i'm just furious that animals get put down for attacking their 'owners'. i mean hey, i want a slow loris creeping about the place as much as the next guy but i'm not that selfish.

sad times. not to mention the breeder primates are forcefully impregnated, which causes all sorts of health issues. people... why do you suck so?

i wish a baboon would steal these people's babies and keep them in cages...
xj

p.s. on the bright side, look how cute lorises are when you tickle them!

p.p.s. i hope that video didn't inspire you to get a pet loris...