5. Dolly the Sheep
On the 5th of July, 1996, the first mammal cloned from an adult somatic cell was born. Dolly earned the title of “the world’s most famous sheep,” although the competition wasn’t exactly heated. Her arrival was met with a polarized response — while most of the scientific community saw Dolly as a major breakthrough, controversy surrounded the nature of her cloning.
Dolly was able to live a seemingly normal sheep’s life. She had six lambs, but only lived to be six and a half years old, a little more than half the average life expectancy for a sheep. She was euthanized because she had a progressive lung disease, but it was never determined if the illness was caused by her cloning.
4. Washoe the Chimpanzee
The fact that chimps are smart isn’t news. Many tests, studies and experiments have shown that chimps have a complex social structure, good communication skills, reasoning abilities and the ability to use tools. A lot of the knowledge we have today regarding chimpanzees and their intelligence is thanks to Washoe.
It seemed that Washoe was always destined for great things. Initially, she was intended to be part of the space program and would have been one of the first animals sent into space. However, she was moved to another study where Drs. Allen and Beatrix Gardner were trying to find ways to communicate with other primates. They started with spoken methods, but decided to try American Sign Language (ASL) with Washoe. The Gardners took Washoe in and attempted to raise her as they would a deaf-mute child.
The strategy worked, and Washoe became the first non-human to learn ASL. When she died in 2007 at the age of 42 Washoe knew over 250 words, and the same technique has been used successfully several times since then to teach other chimps to communicate.
3. Lady Wonder the Horse
Most horses that become famous do so because of their racing prowess, although a few achieve notoriety thanks to their ability to perform tricks. Lady Wonder, however, gained fame and fortune (mostly for her owner) thanks to her supposed psychic abilities. Forget about being proficient for an animal psychic — Lady Wonder boasted a career that put most human psychics to shame. She’s said to have consulted over 150,000 people, she was used to discover oil, and was supposedly even sought out by police in the disappearance of a little boy. Her abilities even impressed psychologist and botanist J.B. Rhine, a man who tried to debunk several well-known human psychics.
Of course, not everyone was convinced of Lady Wonder’s powers, and magician Milbourne Christopher debunked the ruse. Christopher showed that actions by her owner led Lady Wonder to the correct answer. Whenever her owner didn’t know the answer to a question, the horse was unable to provide it.
2. Knut the Polar Bear
Knut was a polar bear that was born and raised in captivity at the Berlin Zoo after it was rejected by his mother. His mere presence was notable, as he was the first polar bear cub to survive past infancy at the zoo in over 30 years. This was enough to turn him into a popular tourist attraction whose life and development were covered by the German media.
Controversy arose when animal rights activist Frank Albrecht said that it would have been better to let the cub die instead of having it be raised by humans. This led to a massive outpouring of support for Knut as people pleaded with the Berlin Zoo to not kill him. Once the zoo decided to keep him Knut became a worldwide phenomenon, leading to books, toys, DVDs and special media events.
Sadly, Knut died suddenly at the age of four. An autopsy revealed that he was suffering from encephalitis, which caused a seizure that led to Knut collapsing and drowning in his swimming enclosure.
1. Hachiko the Dog
Fewer dogs have done more than Hachiko to promote a positive image for both their breed and their entire species. Hachiko, widely regarded as the most famous dog in Japan’s history, is remembered as the quintessential loyal dog that will always love and obey his master thanks to his daily routine with his owner, professor Hidesaburo Ueno. Each morning the professor would take the train to work at the University of Tokyo and when he came back in the evening Hachiko would be waiting for him. This went on for two years until the professor died of a cerebral hemorrhage. For the next nine years until his death in 1935, Hachiko would still go each day to the train station and wait for his master.
One of the professor’s former students heard about this feat of loyalty and began writing about Hachiko and the Akita breed. And many people who used the same station regularly were already familiar with Hachiko, and would bring him water and food. By the end, the dog even had his own bed to wait in. His story of unwavering loyalty became a famous symbol for family closeness. When Hachiko died his body was preserved and is still on display at the National Museum of Nature and Science in Tokyo.
LoliBOY 