Pets and Animals World

Rooks are birds of the crow family. Rooks are distinguished from similar members of the crow family by the bare grey-white skin around the base of the adult’s bill in front of the eyes. The feathering around the legs also looks “shaggier” and laxer than the congeneric Carrion Crow. The juvenile is superficially more similar to the Crow because it lacks the bare patch at the base of the bill, but it loses the facial feathers after about six months.

Rhinoceros are characterized by large heads, broad chests, thick legs, poor eyesight, excellent hearing, and a fondness for rolling in the mud. Rhinoceros also have acute hearing and sense of smell, but poor eyesight over any distance. Most rhinoceros live to be about 50 years old or more. For ages, rhino horn has been used to treat illnesses, especially fevers. Yet like our fingernails and hair, is made of Keratin. Because they are very nearsighted, they often charge when they are startled. This has given them an undeserved reputation for having a bad temper.

Raptors are birds of prey that hunt food with their talons. They are characterized by a curved tip at the end of the beak and a superb vision.

Ravens are large black birds. Ravens have a varied diet. They will eat a wide number of foods, including insects, berries, fruit, other birds’ eggs, carrion, wolf or dog faeces, and human-produced foods such as bread. They also may kill small birds and mammals, including young rabbits and rats, but do so mainly as opportunists.

Rats are small omnivorous rodents. Wild rats living in good environments are typically healthy and robust animals. Wild rats living in cities may suffer themselves from poor diet the rat makes a fine pet, known for its intelligence, playfulness and sociability. They are extremely clean. Rats can be taught entertaining tricks, in the same way as many other domesticated animals. It has been observed that rats can actually last longer without water than camels. Rats have a normal lifespan ranging from two to five years, though three years is typical.

Rattlesnakes are vipers and highly venomous snakes. Rattlesnakes feed on rodents and other small animals, subduing their prey by striking them quickly with a venomous bite. The rattle found at the tip of the tail is used as a warning device when threatened.

Wild reindeer are mostly found in North America, Greenland and Iceland. Domesticated animals (reindeer) are shorter-legged and heavier than their wild counterparts (caribou). The caribou of North America can run at speeds of almost 50 miles per hour and may travel 3,000 miles in a year.

Raccoons are omnivores, eating berries, insects, eggs and small animals. Raccoons can live in the city or in the wild, but are not normally kept as pets. They average 2 to 3 feet long (including the tail) and 12 inches high, weigh 8 to 22 pounds (heaviest in autumn), and live for 10 to 13 years.

Raccoons are omnivores, eating berries, insects, eggs and small animals. Raccoons can live in the city or in the wild, but are not normally kept as pets. They average 2 to 3 feet long (including the tail) and 12 inches high, weigh 8 to 22 pounds (heaviest in autumn), and live for 10 to 13 years.

Rabbits are clearly distinguished from hares in that rabbits are altricial, having young that are born blind and hairless; all rabbits, except the cottontail rabbit, live underground in burrows or warrens. Hares are generally bigger, have longer ears and have black markings on their fur. They also live in simple nests above the ground, just as the cottontail rabbit does, and usually do not live together in groups.

Once found in great numbers in South Africa, this extinct species of plain zebras is nowhere present on the planet. It was distinguished from other zebras by having the usual vivid marks on the front part of the body only. In the mid-section, the stripes faded and the dark, inter-stripe spaces became wider, and the hindquarters were a plain brown. The quagga had been hunted to extinction for meat, hides, and to preserve feed for domesticated stock. The last wild quagga was probably shot in the late 1870s, and the last specimen in captivity died 1883.

Quails are small, plump terrestrial birds. They are seed eaters along with small insects as their prey. Some quail are farmed in large numbers. Quails are mostly kept to produce eggs that are sold worldwide.

Quails are small, plump terrestrial birds. They are seed eaters along with small insects as their prey. Some quail are farmed in large numbers. Quails are mostly kept to produce eggs that are sold worldwide.

Having a length that varies from 3 to 20 feet some Pythons are the longest snakes in the world. Most pythons live in the dense underbrush of rugged tropical rainforest regions. Like all snakes, Pythons are also capable swimmers. Pythons wrap themselves around their prey killing them by squeezing them to death. They swallow their prey whole, and take several days or even weeks to fully digest it. Despite their intimidating size and muscular power, they are generally not dangerous to humans. Pythons will not usually attack humans unless startled or provoked, although females protecting their eggs can be aggressive.

Puma is a solitary cat native to the Americas. Pumas are tawny-coloured with black-tipped ears and tail. They avoid people, and attacks on humans are rare. There is a considerable variation in colour and size of these animals across their large range of habitats. Though large in size, this cat cannot roar, but instead purrs and has even been said to make eerily humanlike screams when courting.

Native to North American grasslands Prairie Dogs are small rodents. Prairie dogs are named for their habitat and warning call, which sounds similar to a dog’s bark. The prairie dog is chiefly herbivorous, though it eats some insects. It feeds primarily on grass. They have up to 4 pups yearly, which are born blind and furless and need about 30 days of close nurturing by their mother. The prairie dog is well-adapted to predators. Using its dichromatic colour vision, it can detect predators from afar and then alert other prairie dogs to the danger with a special, high-pitched call.

Possums are small marsupials with brown or grey fur, ranging in size from the length of a finger o the length of a forearm (brush tails and ringtails). All possums are omnivorous and nocturnal creatures. Possums hide in a nest in a hollow tree during the day and coming out during the night to forage for food. In suburban areas they are often considered pests owing to their habit of eating fruit, vegetables, flowers and tender young shoots from gardens, and nesting in roofs.

Related to whales and dolphins yet distinct Porpoises are found in the Northern Hemisphere. The most obvious visible difference between the two groups is that porpoises have spatulate (flattened) teeth distinct from the conical teeth of dolphins. Compared with dolphins they rear more young more quickly than dolphins. Porpoises tend to be smaller but stouter than dolphins. They have small, rounded heads and blunt jaws instead of beaks. Their teeth are spade-shaped, whereas dolphins have conical teeth. In addition, a porpoise’s dorsal fin is generally triangular, rather than falcate (curved) like that of many dolphins and large whales.

Porcupines are rodents famously known for their coat of sharp spines, or quills that defend them from predators. Contrary to popular belief, porcupines are not capable of throwing their quills. Porcupines occupy a wide range of habitats in tropical and temperate parts; Porcupines live in forests, deserts and grasslands. Some live in trees, others stay on the ground.

The term “pony” can be used generally for any small horse or colt, regardless of its actual measurements. It is interesting to note, however, that some equine breeds are not considered ponies. There are several wild breeds of pony, and these have often been captured and bred for various purposes. Used for hauling loads of coal up from the mines, for freight transport, as children’s mounts and for entertainment, and later as competitors and performers in their own right. They were also ridden (and continue to be ridden) by adults, as ponies are usually very strong.