Mother Swan Dies of “Broken Heart” After Vandals Smash Her Nest and Crush Eggs With Bricks

A majestic mother swan has apparently “died of a broken heart” after her cygnets, or unborn swanlings, were killed by a group of vandals throwing bricks at her nest.

(TMU) – A majestic mother swan has apparently “died of a broken heart” after her cygnets, or unborn swanlings, were killed by a group of vandals throwing bricks at her nest.

The tale is a stark example of the ways in which human beings’ failure to show consideration to nature can lead to tragedy.

According to the Manchester Evening News, the swan’s nest was located along the Manchester Canal in Bolton, North West England, and was home to her six unhatched eggs.

A group of teenage boys had been sighted throwing stones and large bricks at nests in the area on May 20, specifically aiming for the island where the mother swan had hoped to keep her eggs secure.

Only three of six unhatched cygnets survived the deadly incident.

Local conservationists and wildlife defenders had been keeping close track of the swans and the nest. According to the activists, even more eggs have been lost since then – with only a single egg remaining.

The male swan and father to the cygnets fled the nest area two weeks ago due to the unbearable stress of the losses.

But it was earlier this week that the mother swan was found dead near her nest following her irreparable losses.

“There’s not much I can say really,” wildlife activist Sam Woodrow told Manchester Evening News.

“She probably died of a broken heart as she had a partner for life and he was driven away by stress.”

The losses have sent shockwaves through the community of animal-lovers in the region, with Facebook user Charlie Tomo even offering a £1,000 reward for any information pointing to the culprits.

Another local, Michael Mason, explaining in the All About Bolton Facebook group:

“I really don’t want to do this post today because it comes with great sadness.

“I have tried to keep you updated on this swan who laid six eggs, three were destroyed by youths, she has then been harassed by dogs jumping in and harassed by a duck and moor hen and two more eggs were lost leaving her with one egg.

“Her mate left her on her own and sadly I was informed this morning she was found slumped in her nest dead. Just feel like crying as I have followed her progress for about 12 weeks.”

When locals inquired about the likely cause of the swan’s death, Mason answered, “To be honest I think it was a broken heart.”

It has been known for swans to die of a broken heart in case they lose their partners, especially because swans are intensely monogamous and tend to stick with only one mating partner for their entire lives. This is one reason why swans have been considered a symbol of true love.

Additionally, swans are infamously aggressive when it comes to caring for each other as well as their eggs and cygnets – but in this case it appears that the unprovoked local hoodlums hurling bricks had the upper hand.

A spokesperson for the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) said:

“This is a really sad development and it is very upsetting to hear about the death of this poor swan. We are investigating the previous distressing incident and we would urge anyone with information to contact our appeals line on 0300 123 8018. Swans, their nests and their eggs are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.”

Animal Conservationists Wear Special Jackets to Take Care of an Orphaned Baby Zebra

The realities of the animal kingdom can be cruel, but there are miracles that emerge from it. At the end of February 2020, a herd of goats and their herdsman saved a baby zebra’s life, and the love and care from animal conservationists has given the foal an opportunity to someday return to the wild.

The zebra is Diria—named after the ranch from where he was rescued—and he arrived at the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust in Kenya shortly after being saved from a near-death experience with lions. The pride killed Diria’s mother, and when the orphaned colt instinctively ran the other direction, he ran towards the group of goats. The herdsman brought him to Kenya Wildlife Service who then delivered him to the Trust’s VOI Reintegration Unit.

After Diria’s arrival, the Trust got to work taking care of him as a mother figure would. “Baby zebras need to be able to recognize their mother from birth to survive,” Rob Brandford, Executive Director of the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, explains to My Modern Met. “To learn its mother’s stripes, a mother zebra will often separate herself and her baby from the herd so that the baby can imprint—essentially recognize and follow her coat, smell, and call. Once the calf can identify its mother, the duo will return to the herd.”

Without Diria’s mother, it’s left to the workers to properly raise the foal. “In the wild, calves will be raised by their mother alone but at our Reintegration Unit, it isn’t practical for a single individual to hand-raise Diria should they go on annual leave,” Brandford remarks. “Therefore, to avoid this fragile new-born imprinting on one person, our Keepers don a specially made striped coat that Diria will recognize as his ‘mum,’ regardless of who is wearing it. A team of caregivers can give Diria the specialist 24/7 care he needs to give him the very best chance of survival.”

“Through the use of our specially made coat, a group of Keepers can offer this specialist care, walking with him in the protected area in the immediate vicinity of our Reintegration Unit so that he can learn about his wild environment,” Brandford says. Diria is affectionate with his caregivers, and he is said to “love nothing more than nuzzling into them”—with the exception of feeding time. “Keepers offer regular milk feeds and, at night, Diria sleeps in a stable so that he remains safe from predators. When he is older, it is hoped that Diria can return to his birthright: the wild, and reintegrate into the wild herds of zebras that live on the doorstep of the Reintegration Unit.”

A young zebra named Diria was orphaned when his mother was killed by lions.

He was rescued by a herdsman and eventually taken to the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust.

His caretakers wear special jackets so that he can “imprint” correctly and eventually return to the wild.

This Shop Owner Installed A Glass Ceiling For His Cats And Now They Won’t Stop Staring At Him

If you have a cat, consider yourself under constant surveillance. Cats are not only extremely cautious, but also super curious. Hence, it is natural for them to always be in places where they can observe everything all the time in peace.

Like behind a glass ceiling, for example. Yep, we may not have the original ceiling cat any more, but it as a concept lives on in other iterations of ceilings and cats mashed up to fascinate the internet.

Remember ceiling cat? Well, his ‘successors’ have recently been going viral on the internet

A twitter user recently shared pics of what his friend’s shop looks like after putting up some glass ceiling panels in place of regular suspended ceiling tiles

So, Taiwanese Twitter user @SCMcrocodile recently tweeted some pictures of his friend’s shop that has recently undergone some ceiling modifications to include glass tiles for casual feline spectators.

His friend owns a small store with an attic area. Calling it an attic where there’s a suspended tile ceiling is, of course, a bit of a stretch, but it most certainly is an attic for his cat companions!

The ceiling now features several glass panels in place of the regular ceiling tiles. And his cat friends, of which there seem to be three, are often seen chilling on the glass, either just lying down, or actively looking and meowing at mortals below, but in any case, serving as permanent surveillance.

His cats are seen casually chilling there, meowing at people and watching everything they do inside the store

Ever seen what your animal looks like from the bottom of a glass table? Well, the effect is the same here, except it’s in the ceiling, where people will see such a perspective more naturally.

The same tweeter also shared another picture of what happens when these same cats aren’t fed on time. Let’s say, they are not just there for surveillance, but to enforce order as well. An active alarm system.

Now, remember the ceiling cat? It was a lolcat meme from the early days of modern internet where a cat shoved its head through a square hole in the ceiling and was peering into whatever was happening below.

People have started joking that these are ceiling cats 2.0/3.0, making for the perfect purrveillance system

Well, after seeing the glass ceiling cats, the internet has been going nuts, with many claiming that the legend of the ceiling cat has been revived.

Others joked that this is the true definition of CCTV—cat ceiling top view—or also calling it purrveilance. Yet others pointed out that this is where cats actually belong, looking down upon us like the overlords that they truly are.

And it seems that the cats don’t just monitor, but could also shred an intruder to bits

Image credits: CMcrocodile

But nobody really asked the main question: now that the cats are conditioned to walk on glass, if you took out the panel, would they just plummet to the floor because animals can’t always tell the difference between glass and thin air? Asking for a friend.

Needless to say, this went viral on the internet, amassing over 178,900 likes on Twitter with more than 67,000 retweets, and finding its way onto several meme sites where people loved it.

There’s also a video about these ceiling cats

Hundreds Gather To Rescue Desperate Whale Hours From Death, Then It Says Thanks.

A life was in the balance.

Hundreds of people gathered on a Rio beach this week to rescue a beached humpback whale calf from certain death. The 32-foot baby, estimated to weigh more than seven tons, found itself unable to escape the shallow waters when the tide began rushing out to sea.

The whale was stranded at the world-famous Praia da Marina beach in Búzios, Brazil, late Wednesday afternoon. Dozens of people spent the night digging a channel to the ocean with shovels, while others doused the gigantic mammal with sea water to keep its skin from drying out.

The next morning, a nearby marina dispatched one of their backhoe excavators to help complete the channel for the whale once high tide returned.

During low tide, Good Samaritans formed a human assembly line from the water’s edge to the whale with buckets to ensure it stayed wet.

A few hours later, hundreds of people gathered on the popular beach to watch and cheer on rescuers.

The tide finally returned and good samaritans gave one final push to save the giant animal from a slow and painful death.

With the help of the excavator, rescuers were able to put the whale in a giant sling and hoist the animal back into deeper waters. The crowd cheered and watched with tears in their eyes as the majestic creature sprung to life in the ocean.

When the sea pup finally recovered, it waved its fins and tail as if to say ‘thank you’ to the faithful, big-hearted people that saved its life. Check out the moment this little (big) beautiful animal was set free in the video below.

De volta pra casa! O vídeo que faltava.Aplausos para aqueles que de alguma forma ajudaram incansavelmente… 👏👏👏👏👏Imagens: Fran Molly/ Folha de Búzios

Posted by Folha de Búzios on Thursday, August 24, 2017

If only we as humans would come together for each other like these kind souls did for this whale, this world would become a much brighter place overnight.

Share if you agree.

Vegan Woman Forced Her Fennec Fox To Go Vegan, And Here’s What Happened

Fennec foxes eat rodents, insects, birds, rabbits, and eggs, but this one doesn’t. For years, vegan blogger Sonia Sae has been raising her pet fox Jumanji on a vegan diet, and it has developed all sorts of health problems. Recently, however, a few people worked hard to spread the word about this behavior they call abusive, and the internet is infuriated.

According to experts, a fennec’s diet in the wild is comprised of about 90% animals and insects while the remaining 10% consists of various plants they dig up. Naturally, they need a lot of protein when living in captivity as well. Forcing her omnivore Jumanji on a vegan menu only, Sae has probably messed up its entire nutrition. For example, fennecs really need calcium and taurine. The latter is an organic compound that’s widely distributed in animal tissues. Without it, these big-eared creatures will probably develop reproductive and heart problems. And this is only the tip of the iceberg.

Sae has already admitted that Jumanji is half blind, suffers from spontaneous convulsions and a severe skin condition. However, she refuses the idea that its diet is a cause of these problems. “They use the word ‘abuse’ to describe the act of feeding [it] food that no animal had to die for. Despite the obvious oxymoron, any other non-vegan alternative DOES involve abuse by default,” she said in a Facebook post.

People have already contacted local animal rights authorities and are waiting for their response.

More info: faithfulfoxes.com

For years, vegan blogger Sonia Sae has been raising her pet fox Jumanji on a vegan diet ’cause she thinks that all species are equals

This was brought to the internet’s attention after one concerned woman posted a message on Facebook

This is how the fox looked like when Sonia Sae bought it:

Later, however, its appearance started to deteriorate

Alice tried to explain why the owner shouldn’t feed him a vegan diet

While Sonia kept sharing her pet’s photos with very concerning descriptions

Alice also pointed out that Jumanji was experiencing some serious health issues

But Sonia refused to believe what ‘haters’ were saying

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In the photos that she kept posting on Instagram, it was clearly visible how thin the fox has gotten

Not only that, her fur is thinning, she’s developing severe skin conditions

Fennecs really need calcium and taurine. The latter is an organic compound that’s widely distributed in animal tissues

Without it, these big-eared creatures develop reproductive and heart problems

This is what the owner had to say about the accusations people made online

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Someone e-mailed animal rights authorities trying to consult what could be done with this and here’s what they had to say

For comparison, here are some photos of healthy fennec foxes

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A Whale Approaches His Boat And Peaks Out Of The Water. That’s When He Sees It…

James Moskito and other volunteers encountered this humpback whale just off the Farallon Islands (near the San Francisco coast). The whale stuck her eye out of the water and seemed to stare directly at James. That’s when they realized that she was entangled in multiple crab nets and fishing lines, as well as a very heavy anchor. Without hesitation, James jumped into the freezing cold, shark-infested waters and worked for 5 hours to free the whale. What happened next is almost unbelievable…

Be sure to SHARE this incredible close encounter with your family and friends.

Whales roam throughout all of the world’s oceans, communicating with complex and mysterious sounds. Their sheer size amazes us: the blue whale can reach lengths of more than 100 feet and weigh up to 200 tons—as much as 33 elephants.

Despite living in the water, whales breathe air. And like humans, they are warm-blooded mammals who nurse their young. A thick layer of fat called blubber insulates them from cold ocean waters.

Some whales are known as baleen whales, including blue, right, bowhead, sei, and gray whales. This refers to the fact that they have special bristle-like structures in their mouths (called baleen) that strain food from the water. Other whales, such as beluga or sperm whales, have teeth.

This Norwegian Guy Dived Into A Frozen Lake To Rescue A Drowning Duck

When you think of animals in danger of drowning, you likely don’t think of ducks, after all these adorable birds make their life on the water. Yet, one duck living in Norway nearly did drown, but thanks to one kind-hearted, and very brave man, the duck got another quack at life.

36-year-old Lars Jørun Langøien is a bearded hero in the animal community. The Norwegian ice bather is now being hailed the new King of the Ducks. When he arrived at the partially frozen lake, Lars was already wearing his swimming gear, as he was planning to get in the freezing cold waters, but he wasn’t expecting to see a duck in trouble.

What Lars, who is clearly not afraid of a little cold water, does next will warm your heart!

The afternoon started off innocently enough, with Lars planning to take an ice bath just about the same time a sweet little duck was taking a walk across the same partially frozen lake.

Clearly, the ice was not very thick and it didn’t take long for the duck to find a soft patch and fall through. As a result, the innocent duck was quickly becoming trapped beneath the ice, sure to drown soon if someone didn’t step in to the rescue.

On any other day this poor little ducky may have been left to die, freezing to death under the frigid ice waters. But not on Lars’ watch! No wet suit necessary, Lars immediately went into action, diving topless into the freezing waters and pulling the duck out to its rescue.
Lars lifted the rather shocked duck to safety, and he used mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to get the nearly lifeless bird back into action. To his delight, Lars was successful at reviving his new feathered-friend. He then used his own warm towel to dry off the thankful duck.

The duck doesn’t even try to get away as Lars warms him up and makes sure he is all right.

If you have ever tried to pick up a wild duck you know the task is more work than it’s worth, plus you might even scare a duck half to death just trying. Wild animals don’t generally just allow humans to come along and pick them up, but clearly this duck knows that Lars has his best interest at heart, after all he just saved his life!

Lars regularly dives into frozen lakes, causing many to wonder—but why?! For some it’s an adrenaline thing, but ice bathing is also a form of muscle therapy, and the idea is actually not as wild as it may seem.

Soaking in ice-cold water comes from a general theory that if you submerge yourself in very cold water it can help to heal small tears in muscle fibers, which can help reduce soreness related to extensive exercise. It is believed that an ice bath actually constricts blood vessels, and helps flush out waste products, which ultimately helps to reduce swelling and the breaking down of tissues.

Lars has earned a great deal of recognition from his animal rescue story, although the feeling of praise is nothing compared to the therapeutic feeling of saving an innocent life. Animals have families to care for and lives to tend to; showing them the kindness they deserve makes the world a better place.

Thanks to you, Lars, for warming our spirits and saving this sweet little duck from his untimely demise. Remember, if you see an animal in danger it is never too late to step in and try to help save their life.

Photo Credits: vg.no, iBleedOrange

Meet The Owl With Eyes Like The Night Sky

We all know it can be impossible not to immediately fall in love with cute, fluffy animals with big eyes that melt away your soul. But Zeus takes this to another level

Zeus is a blind Western screech owl whose eyes truly look like twinkling galaxies. It’s almost impossible to stop gazing into them.

His starry eyes are the result of clots of protein and blood pigment, but he also has cataracts. HIs condition is probably the result of an attack by a predator, but it’s possible he also had a flying accident. He only has around 10% of his vision, so he cannot be released back into the wild and so stays at the Wildlife Learning Center in California where he receives a lot of TLC.

Photo

Jealous Great Dane Throws The Most ADORABLE Temper Tantrum! Hysterical!

Watch this adorable moment when, much to Mom and Dad’s enjoyment, Dinky the Great Dane argues and throws a major temper tantrum — because she’s jealous that brother Ro-Ro is getting all the “lovies!” This video couldn’t be cuter if it tried.

What an expressive pup, using big words like that. It’s okay Dinky, you’ll get your very own attention soon enough. Give your brother a chance!

Please SHARE this adorable moment!

Massive grouper fish eats five foot shark in one bite

I wasn’t familiar with the Grouper fish before I saw this video, so it’s good to know there’s yet another sea creature out there that could swallow a human whole.

YouTube user Gimbb14 was fishing off the coast Bonita Springs, Florida, when he managed to snag a five foot long black tip shark.

Sadly, the ocean is a cruel mistress, and she didn’t think this particular fisherman was worthy of such an impressive catch.

Instead, an enormous grouper fish emerges from the depths to gobble the shark up in a single bite.

The grouper fish can grow up to eight feet long and tip the scales at 308 kgs, so it’s little surprise this shark could still be considered a light lunch.

If you did happen to think it was safe to go back in the water, you may want to reconsider

Woman Was Sitting on Her Kayak in a Bay When.. wow holy crap…..

While kayaking in Monterey Bay and watching a huge raft of sea lions that had come up right in front of these kayakers , a bus-sized humpback whale suddenly rose up out of the water only 10 feet from one of their boats. It was making a b-line toward the boat. Humpbacks are graceful and fully aware of their size and of their surroundings, so the kayaker wasn’t scared (at first) but was certainly shocked that it chose to swim right up to her. It dove under her kayak, which was amazing and exhilarating! But then its back arched and came to the surface about 3 inches from her boat, which freaked her out a bit. She wondered: hmmm, maybe this one needs contact lenses? Then its enormous barnacle-encrusted tail came out of the water and was about 12 inches from her face, which pretty much made her eyes pop out of her head. (that’s why she swore 😉 – She was rather stunned!

About a minute later, another whale came up and dove down right next to other kayakers. It was truly unbelievable!

Dog Passes Out From Overwhelming Joy When This Girl Comes Home After Two Years

You have never heard a scream like this, Casey the Schnauzer let out a true scream of joy when her long-lost sibling came home. Rebecca Svetina and her family dog Casey have been pals for about 9 years, although their relationship has often been long distance. When Rebecca was studying to be a communication major at Kent State University, Casey was only a puppy. In between college breaks, Rebecca would return to her parent’s house is Murrysville, where her dog was always there to greet her.

As any college student knows, there were a lot of hellos and goodbyes as Rebecca went back and forth to college and then home. But never had Rebecca been gone for so long until she decided to embark on a trip to Slovenia in 2008. On July 23, two years later, Rebecca finally returned home. At which point Casey could not have been happier to see her.

Her family was excited to see her, no doubt, but it’s her little doggy that stole the show. Just want until you see the video for yourself!

According to her family, Casey is “very loyal and loving to family and friends.” She is known for getting very excited when she greets people, regardless if they have been gone for one week or a few hours. Yet no one had ever seen Casey get so excited until the day Rebecca returned home.

After graduating, Rebecca decided to head off to Slovenia in 2008, causing her and Casey to be apart far more often.

Rebecca’s new husband, Miha Svetina, shot the video of the reunion with the purpose of sharing it with their friends and family back in Europe. To their surprise, FAR more people, in fact millions, have clicked to watch the heartwarming video of a dog and his human.

The video has since taken YouTube by storm, earning millions of views and causing their phone to ring off the hook from curious reporters and people all over the world. While the video is amazing, it did cause the family some concerns at first. They said in a phone interview, “We were actually worried. Was she having a heart attack or a stroke

Once Casey couldn’t scream anymore, she decided to collapse on the ground, a pile of happiness, at last her friend was home! At which point you can even hear Rebecca’s husband in the background asking, “Is she okay by the way?”

Just to take make sure their sweet Schnauzer was in fact okay, they took Casey to the vet after the incident. Turns out, Casey appears to be just fine but she has been under close watch–just in case all of that love and excitement proved too much.

The couple was married in Slovenia a year ago, with 20 of their closest American friends and family in attendance. On July 26 they came to Rebecca’s hometown of Murrysville in order to have a reception at the Ehalt family home with 80 close guests.

After their wedding and reception, the couple had plans to take it easy, see some of the awesome sights around Pittsburg for the week. Including the Frank Lloyd Wright’s architectural masterpiece in Fayette County, and the Senator John Heinz History Center. None of these plans came to fruition, instead the couple had to decide which media groups they would give interviews to, considering EVERYONE wanted one.

CNN, Good Morning America, and a few local news stations were among the lucky to score an interview with Rebecca and her overjoyed dog.

Rebecca chose to go to Slovenia because her grandparents migrated from there back in 1908. For one year of her stay, a scholarship paid for her to be there and learn the language. The trip ended up being a once in a lifetime opportunity Rebecca is so happy to have had. She says, “It’s a beautiful country with just 2 million residents. You can swim in the sea and hike in the mountains all in the same day.”

Not only did she have an amazing time there, but she met her husband Miha Svetina during her 11th month in the country, at which point she stopped coming home as frequently. Eventually causing 2 years to go by without Casey and Rebecca seeing one another.

Rebecca is a graphic designer and she is also an English teacher. Unfortunately for sweet little Casey, Rebecca now calls Slovenia home, although she’s coming back to the states August 10th–get ready for some excitement Casey!

I Walked In On My Husband Doing THIS With Our Dog! He Had NO IDEA I Was Filming!

Everyone likes dancing, but when was the last time you saw a dancing Frenchie?

In this funny video, a man has taught his dog a few hip hop dance moves, and after a little prompting, the dog is able to bust them out just as good as his owner! I love the Frenchie head tilt! There is just nothing cuter!

My favorite part of this video is the end, where the guy realizes he’s being recorded! That means he was just dancing with his dog for fun, which is basically one of the sweetest things ever!

Please SHARE this hip hop doggie!

Two-Headed Alligator Reportedly Spotted In Florida

Over the weekend, Justin Arnold from Seminole Heights, Florida posted a picture of a two-headed alligator he claims to have seen while walking his dog. Though the picture has been shared thousands of times, some have expressed concern that the picture isn’t exactly what it claims to be.

Axial bifurcation is caused when monozygotic twins fail to separate completely. This results in polycephaly, having more than one head. While two-headed reptiles aren’t completely unheard of, it is rare that they would survive for any length of time without human intervention and care. Even then, survival isn’t guaranteed.

We introduced you to Medusa (see image below) a two-headed snake, back in April. Her feedings have to be carefully orchestrated, due to competition from one head to the next. Despite the fact that both heads didn’t really need to eat due to a shared digestive system, if both heads weren’t fed simultaneously, one would attack the other.

This inability focus on feeding is just one reason that polycephalic animals don’t fare very well in the wild. One body controlled by two independent brains also leads to animals that generally don’t move very well, which would be particularly problematic when trying to evade predators.

On Facebook, Arnold stated that this animal had been reported by several people to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), who gave a brief explanation for the cause of the condition. However, the FWC told a local Fox affiliate that they were skeptical of the photograph, though Patch reports that two trappers were sent to investigate.

The photograph has drawn in a fair amount of skepticism from commenters, as there are no tracks in the sand coming out from the water and the right limbs are hovering above the sand. While some are calling it a work of Photoshop, others suspect it may have been the product of creative taxidermy.

The biggest clue that this is alligator is likely a hoax is considering the source itself. Arnold also runs a blog on Tumblr dedicated to bizarre items being passed off as real items. One specimen includes a “very rare” trout sporting a thick fur coat, allegedly caught in Lake Michigan in the 1960s. The plaque reads: “It is believed that the great depth and extreme penetrating coldness of the water in which these fish live has caused them to grow their dense coat of fur.” As a Michigan native, I can attest that things get cold, but never so cold that fish defy evolution and begin looking like the lovechild of a trout and a Yeti.

Here are some photos of some actual two-headed animals:

Fat cat! Meet Sumo the 14kg flabby tabby – who’s on a special diet to shed half his body weight

When Sumo the cat was brought into the RSPCA last week he became the fattest cat to have waddled through their doors for decades.
‘He is the biggest cat I’ve ever seen and I’ve been a vet for 45 years,’ said Vicki Lomax, RSPCA veterinarian who works at the Wacol RSPCA in Brisbane where Sumo was brought in.
Tipping the scales at 14.3kg, the nine-year-old ordinary domestic short hair weighs almost three times what he should.

The nine-year-old cat is being cared for by Tanya Boland and her daughter Aislynne (pictured) for a month. Tanya is a vet nurse form the RSPCA and has put him on a special diet

Sumo, held here by Tanya Boland, is at risk of diabetes, as well as heart, liver and kidney disease and arthritis

‘For a cat like him, 5 to 6 kg would probably be a reasonable weight,’ said Ms Lomax.
Sumo came to the RSPCA because his owners were moving house and could not take him with them.
When he was brought to the RSPCA centre staff decided to name him and settled, for obvious reasons, on Sumo.
As with humans, Ms Lomax said, pets get overweight from a combination of overfeeding and lack of exercise.
‘Cats can be very persistent, there are cats that will follow you to the fridge and more or less demand food. There are owners who have trouble saying no, I guess it’s like parents saying no to the kids,’ said Ms Lomax.
‘Overweight cats are pretty much subject to the same problems we have when we’re overweight,’ said Ms Lomax.
Some of the dangers to Sumo’s health posed by his size include heart and kidney disease, diabetes, muscle atrophy, and arthritis.
Sumo is currently being fostered by one of the vet nurses at the RSPCA, Tanya Boland.
She has put Sumo on a strict diet, he is now fed less than two cups of low- calorie dry cat food per day.
On his new diet, Sumo should lose about 250g per week, which would put him on track to be a much healthier animal.
Though his weight loss will present an interesting challenge to the RSPCA vets.
‘I’m not sure what we’re going to do with all his skin when he’s done, he might need a nip and a tuck,’ said Ms Lomax. ‘I’m sure we can find a vet who can deal with it.’

HOW TO TELL IF YOUR CAT IS TOO FAT AND WHAT TO DO ABOUT IT
To tell if your cat has packed on a few too many pounds, Vicki Lomax says you should feel the skin over their ribs.
‘If it’s difficult to feel their ribs, that usually means the cat is overweight,’ she said.
Owners should also weigh their cats – either at the vets or by holding their cats and subtracting their own weight from the total – to see if weight loss is working.
To make sure you’re not overfeeding your cat, check the back of the pet food packet and compare the recommended serve with how much your cat eats.
‘If you’re feeding it too much, you should feed it what the packet says. If that doesn’t work, you should decrease the amount the cat’s being fed by 25 percent,’ recommends Ms Lomax.
If owners don’t see a change after a month, Ms Lomax recommends taking the cat to the vet, where the vet can check for hormonal problems or recommend a special diet.

The cat weighs 14.3kg, almost three times its ideal weight of five to six kg