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At first, this adorable rescued Ocelot cub was just checking out the water, but Manatees are very curious animals, and they know that when we tap the water is to give them their bottles, so when she did it, they went to her. As every kitten, she is also very curious, and was fascinated by the young Manatees, and she soon learned that they came when she tapped the water, so she would do it, then wait for them to come over, and observe them until they swam away... and then do it all over again! Both the Ocelot and the Manatees are orphans, and had to be rescued at a very early age, and now live at a rescue center. They are all still young, which makes them even more curious and wanting to make new friends and play. The Ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) is a small wild cat, but it is the biggest member of the genus Leopardus, which also includes the Margay (Leopardus wiedii), the Northern Tiger Cat (Leopardus tigrinus), the Andean Mountain Cat (Leopardus jacobita), the Kodkod (Leopardus guigna), the Geoffroy's Cat (Leopardus geoffroyi), Pampas Cat (Leopardus colocolo), and the Southern Tiger Cat (Leopardus guttulus). It is native to the Americas and can be found in various habits, such as tropical forests, thorn scrub regions, savannah grasslands, marshes and mangrove forests. The Amazonian Manatee (Trichechus inunguis), as the name suggests, is native to the Amazonian rivers of South America. It is the smallest species of manatee described so far, although there is the possibility of a smaller one, the Dwarf Manatee (Trichechus pygmaeus), but it is not recognized as a species at the moment. The Amazonian Manatee shares the Trichechus genus with the West Indian Manatee (Trichechus manatus) and the West African Manatee (Trichechus senegalensis), but is the only species that lives exclusively in freshwater.

The big dilemma in every child's life: to sleep or to play? This adorable Golden Bengal Tiger cub is clearly sleepy, but that won't keep her from trying to get that annoying stick!

Primates are supposed to be good climbers, but every rule has its exception! When a lemur embarrassingly falls from a tree, watch how he deals with it. Like a boss!

These beautiful female jaguars were rescued from the black market when they were just cubs, so they had to be raised at a Wildlife Refuge, and won't be able to be released back into the wild, unfortunately. They aren't sisters, but they grew up together and still share the same enclosure, so they have formed a strong bond, and one loves to show affection to the other! The illegal wildlife trade is the third most valuable illicit commerce in the world, losing only to drugs and weapons. That, along with loss of habitat by deforestation, fires, etc., results in an enormous amount of animals in need of rescuing. Only 1 in 10 animals survive trafficking! Do not support the pet trade! Animals should be free! The Jaguar (Panthera onca) is the largest cat species in the American continent and the third-largest in the world. It shares the Panthera genus with four other big cats: the Lion (Panthera leo), the Tiger (Panthera tigris), the Leopard (Panthera pardus), and the Snow Leopard (Panthera uncia). It has a stocky body and short, thick and powerful limbs, making the jaguar a great climber and swimmer. The proportionally bigger head grants it an extremely powerful jaw, being able to bite through any prey and drag it. Although the jaguar is often confused with the leopard, it is considerably sturdier and heavier than its African cousin, and it has a rounder head. The rosettes are also different, being larger, sometimes darker, and fewer in number; the contours are thicker and there is a small spot in the center. Each animal has a unique coat pattern, like fingerprints. The head and neck generally have solid spots instead of rosettes; and the same happens on the tail, where they may merge and form a ring. Females are usually 10 to 20% smaller than males, but the smallest male recorded weighed only 36 Kg, and the largest male 158 Kg. Sizes vary according to regions and habitats. The largest jaguars occur in open flood plains areas, in Venezuela and Brazil, and the smallest jaguars are found in the dense forests of Central America.

Elephants love to swim no matter how old they are. Here we see a 4-year-old and his mother both playing in the water, splashing and diving about. Filmed at the Rhino and Wildlife Conservation in Zimbabwe.

This adorable two-month-old Striped Hyena thinks she's a lot bigger than she really is. She can barely pick it up, but that won't keep her from trying to play with this stick that is twice the size of her own body!

This adorable meerkat is only six months old and used to be kept as a pet until her owner realized that's not a good idea. Now, being very used to people, she just loves the attention! The meerkat (Suricata suricatta), also known as suricate, is the sole member of the Suricata genus, but it shares the Herpestidae family with 30 species of mongoose from Africa and Southern Eurasia, and four species of dwarf mongoose. Although there is only one species of meerkat, three subspecies are currently recognized: Suricata suricatta suricatta, in Namibia, Botswana, and South Africa; Suricata suricatta majoriae, in the Kalahari; and Suricata suricatta iona, in southwestern Angola. Meerkats are small burrowing carnivores, feeding mostly on small invertebrates, and live in large underground networks that have multiple entrances. They are very social animals that live in large colonies called clans, which usually consist of about twenty animals, but can have up to 50 members or more. Meerkats are known for sharing burrows with Yellow Mongoose and Ground Squirrel. To ensure the safety of the clan, some individuals serve as lookouts, standing on their rear legs and gazing alertly over the plains, watching for predators such as birds of prey. When a predator is spotted, the sentries give a warning bark or whistle, and the other meerkats run and hide in one of the many entrances they have spread across their territory. Meerkats have different alarm calls depending on which predator was spotted. It is a widespread species in western parts of southern Africa, from north and west South Africa, to southwestern Botswana, western and southern Namibia, and the extreme southwestern Angola. It is possible that it occurs in Lesotho as well, but it hasn't been confirmed yet. It is absent from true desert, forests, and mountainous terrain, inhabiting arid, open country, with short grasses and sparse woody growth.

These young leopards know their food is coming and can't wait! Watch as they bump into each other all the time, trying to climb the fence and open the door! Who doesn't get this excited about food?!

This two-month-old Golden Bengal Tiger might be little, but she's got quite the personality! On this warm Summer day, she found herself a nice hole in the sand to cool down and observe the world around her from the shade. Every baby animal is cute, and cats in particular, so it's no surprise that she looks absolutely adorable, and one could spend hours just looking at her… I mean, just look at that face! Did you know that, even though that are quite a few "types" of tigers, they all belong to the species, Panthera tigris? Nine subspecies were confirmed based on distinctive molecular markers: Amur/Siberian (Panthera tigris altaica), Northern Indochinese (Panthera tigris corbetti), Malayan (Panthera tigris jacksoni), Sumatran (Panthera tigris sumatrae), Bengal (Panthera tigris tigris) and South China Tiger (Panthera tigris amoyensis) still exist, and Bali (Panthera tigris balica), Javan (Panthera tigris sondaica) and Caspian Tiger (Panthera tigris virgate) are now extinct. The Bengal Tiger usually have the classic orange "tiger look", but recessive genes can change color mutations, like the white Bengal tiger and the golden Bengal tiger, as seen in this video. So in spite of being different colors, they are all Bengal Tigers (Panthera tigris tigris). Golden tigers, however, tend to be larger and have a softer fur. Tigers are native to Asia, and can currently be found in Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Russia, and Thailand, even though they used to occur in many other countries. They occur mainly in the forests of tropical Asia, although historically they used to be found in drier and colder climes. Tigers are solitary and territorial animals. A male's territory will usually overlap with the territories of three females, but females' rarely overlap with each other. After a century of decline, the numbers of individuals in the wild is finally starting to increase, but the species is still listed as endangered species, being at risk of extinction.

There is nothing cuter or more peaceful than watching a baby manatee drink milk. At 3 month of age, this little guy still has a lot of growing to do and gets bottle-fed several times of day, with a formula prepared especially for him. Hopefully someday he will be able to return to the ocean!

This baby Woolly Monkey is an orphan and now lives at a rescue center. Primates, in general, are extremely social animals, and the babies need to be with a mother, even if a foster one. The moment she met her caretaker, she instantly adopted her as her foster mom and wants nothing more than to spend the whole day with her. The bond between the monkey and her caretaker is beautiful to watch! All babies love to play, regardless of species, but the resemblance in behavior shared between a baby monkey and a human baby is remarkable! Just look how adorably she plays with her foster mom, just like a human baby would! Although baby monkeys can be super and cuddly, it is important to remember that they are wild animals, and should NOT be kept as pets! This baby lost her mother and was rescued from the black market precisely because people buy monkeys! The Poeppig's Woolly Monkey (Lagothrix poeppigii), also known as Red Woolly Monkey and Silvery Woolly Monkey, shares the Lagothrix genus with four other species: Common Woolly Monkey (Lagothrix lagotricha); Peruvian Woolly Monkey (Lagothrix cana); Colombian Woolly Monkey (Lagothrix lugens); Peruvian Yellow-tailed Woolly Monkey (Lagothrix flavicauda). Although recent studies suggest that the Poeppig's Woolly Monkey and the first three species are actually all different subspecies of Lagothrix lagotricha, and the only separate species should be the Peruvian Yellow-tailed Woolly Monkey. This species of Woolly Monkey is endemic to the Amazon Forest, and studies show that its populations have decreased by at least 30% in the last three generations (45 years). It can be found in Brazil, Peru, and Ecuador. They tend to live in medium-sized groups of 23, 25 individuals, although smaller groups between 10 and 23 have been recorded. All species of Woolly Monkeys (Lagothrix sp.) are at risk of going extinct; from "vulnerable" to "critically endangered", they are all disappearing because of humans. Do not support the pet trade! Monkeys should be free!

These four baby monkeys are rescued orphans and are cared for at a rehabilitation center. They are usually very hyper - running, jumping, climbing and playing everywhere - but when it's raining they just want to feel safe all curled up together in their human foster mom's arms. How cute is that?!

These beautiful Sable Antelopes live in a reserve where they can roam around freely all day and not worry about hunters. Even though they are always grazing and browsing, every once in a while they are given pellets, and being approached by such amazing animals is quite the experience! During the grazing, the group can spread out, but the animals try to stay within sight of each other. The maker of this video managed to record a rare sighting of Sable Antelopes almost interacting with a human in the wild. But, apart from having seen a specimen in the zoo what do we know about the most elegant antelope on the planet? The Sable Antelope, also known as African or Black Antelope (Hippotragus niger for scientists), is a beautiful and graceful animal with a number of distinctive features that are not characteristic of other species of antelope. Both males and females of the species have horns distinguished with a large number of rings and have a semicircular, curved back shape. Their <a href="https://rumble.com/v3f85n-goat-hangs-from-power-line-by-its-horns.html" target="_blank">horns</a> can reach about 160 cm in length, and their ends are incredibly sharp. Crescent and powerful, they are so sharp that they are often compared to the famous Turkish sword. This beauty has its price: the horns are still considered one of the most valuable trophies that can be obtained which puts the fragile creature's existence in terrible peril: many hunters dream of this decoration for their hunting collections and collectors are happy to pay any price. This is the reason why in the early twentieth century, the number of black antelopes began to decline sharply. To save the species, the authorities restricted hunting for it - especially for foreign tourists to whom were mandated expensive licenses, which were not so easy to get. But local residents could bypass this ban. In addition, the demand for antelope horns has only increased. Therefore, immediately there appeared enterprising businessmen who organized the sale of valuable trophies. And as you could see in the video at the top of the page, antelopes, as most grazers are meek and inquisitive. They approached the filmer carefully and gradually and in the end, they exposed themselves in such a way that any person could take advantage of. The adult male black <a href="https://rumble.com/v449o5-beautiful-male-kudu-antelope-lock-horns-in-kruger-national-park.html" target="_blank">antelope</a> weighs about 280 kg. Its height at the withers is 117-140 cm with a body length of 190-210 cm. The females are not much smaller and slimmer: they weigh 240 kg with a body length of 130-150 cm. On both sides of the neck, there is a hard black mane, from 10 to 12 cm. The tip of the tail is decorated with a tassel. The color of the black antelope's coat depends on sex and age. Young males and adult females are usually of a dark chestnut color, but older males have charcoal-black fur. Only their belly is completely white. In addition, both sexes have a light pattern on their muzzles whisch is, like our fingerprints, unique for each individual. Black antelopes live in large herds. If there are enough water and pastures, then adult females with cubs adhere to the territory of one male. Leaders mark the boundaries of their lands with piles of manure and regularly update them. In addition, they leave visual marks as well: they use their sharp horns and heavy hooves to break and trample on a border-marking bush. Alpha-males actively protect their harem from uninvited visitors. During the fight, they kneel like horses and menacingly direct their magnificent antlers toward the enemy. Between females, too, a certain hierarchy is established. They can even fight with each other to prove their right to a higher position. At the same time, they are standing shoulder to shoulder by other females should their young be in danger. Very often, female Sable Antelopes are known to drive off even lioness, and during such fights, it does not matter whose cub was in trouble.

This is a rescued lion who has permanent respiratory problems, which means that he often has a runny nose. In spite of being so big and powerful, the way he wipes his nose on his paw, making it look all wrinkled, is absolutely adorable!

This rescued capybara always dips her feet in her water bowl when she drinks it, in spite of having a pool in her enclosure, and she just stays there like that, like she's about to get a manicure! The Capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) is the largest rodent in the world, reaching up to 1.34 m (4.40 ft) in length, with a shoulder height of up to 62 cm (24 in), and typically weighing from 35 to 66 kg (77 to 146 lb). It belongs to the Caviidae family, along with guinea pigs, maras, and cavies. They are semi-aquatic, which means that they only occur in areas where there is water, such as marshes, estuaries, and along rivers and streams. Their bodies are adapted for that lifestyle, having partially webbed toes, for paddling, and long and brittle fur, which makes them dry quickly on land. Although capybaras are herbivores, and graze mainly on grass and aquatic plants, but also feed on fruit and tree bark, they are also autocoprophagous, which means that they eat their own feces to help digest the cellulose in their diet, as it is a source of bacterial gut flora. It also increases the amount of nutrients they get from their food. It can be found in all South American countries, except for Chile. The main threat is hunting for meat and leather, and since they are generally calm and peaceful animals that are easily adaptable, and therefore are often found near humans, they are easy targets. The illegal wildlife trade is the third most valuable illicit commerce in the world, losing only to drugs and weapons. That, along with loss of habitat by deforestation, fires, etc., result in an enormous amount of animals in need of rescuing. Only 1 in 10 animals survive trafficking! Do not support the wildlife trade!

During a trip to Namibia, in Southern Africa, this tourist caught incredible footage of a wild Oryx who decided to run along their speeding vehicle. That's definitely an unforgettable moment!

Unlike most cats, tigers love the water. Here we have two cubs play-fighting together in the most adorable fashion.

This adorable ocelot was another victim of the wildlife traffic, but was lucky enough to be rescued and taken to a Wildlife Refuge. She lives with a male, and it's usually exploring the enclosure, but she will sometimes come over to the switch area to interact with her caretakers. On this day, a volunteer was wearing leopard-print rubber boots, and she was very curious about it and wanted to check it out! How cute is that?! The Ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) is a small wild cat, but it is the biggest member of the genus Leopardus, which also includes the Margay (Leopardus wiedii), the Northern Tiger Cat (Leopardus tigrinus), the Andean Mountain Cat (Leopardus jacobita), the Kodkod (Leopardus guigna), the Geoffroy's Cat (Leopardus geoffroyi), the Pampas Cat (Leopardus colocolo), and the Southern Tiger Cat (Leopardus guttulus). It is native to the Americas and can be found in various habits, such as tropical forests, thorn scrub regions, savannah grasslands, marshes and mangrove forests. It is widely distributed, from northern Argentina to the southwestern United States, and it's the most common cat species throughout much of its range. At the moment the main threats for ocelots are habitat loss and fragmentation, retaliatory killing for depredation of poultry, and the illegal trade of pets and fur. After drugs and weapons, the illegal wildlife trade is the third most valuable illicit commerce in the world. Only one out of ten trafficked animals survive! Do not support the pet trade; do not buy wildlife products! Wild animals should be wild and free!

All primates are very curious, especially the young ones, and this adorable rescued baby baboon is no different, and decides to check out the camera. The Chacma Baboon (Papio ursinus), is one of the five species of baboons, along with the Yellow baboon (Papio cynocephalus), the Olive baboon (Papio anubis), the Guinea baboon (Papio papio), and the Hamadryas baboon (Papio hamadryas). With the exception of the Hamadryas Baboon, which also occurs in the southwestern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, they are all native to the African continent. The Chacma Baboon occurs all over southern Africa, up to the Zambezi valley, Caprivi, and southern Angola. Two subspecies of Chacma Baboon are recognized: Papio ursinus griseipes, occuring in south-west Zambia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique; and Papio ursinus ursinus, occuring in all provinces of South Africa and throughout Namibia. They have the need to drink water daily, making water a limiting factor for their range, but they occupy subdesert and steppes, savanna, all types of woodland, montane regions, Cape Fynbos and Succulent Karoo. Chacma Baboons live in troops of usually 20 to 50 members, but up to 130 individuals have been recorded together. The troops contain adult males, females and the babies, and it has a complex social structure, and are ranked by dominance. Baboons are omnivorous and opportunistic, which means that they eat a little bit of everything, and will take whatever they can get their hands on, even though they might show a preference for bulbs, shoots, roots, seeds, and fruits. They can also eat fungi, lichen, invertebrates, small vertebrates and, occasionally, even small antelopes, or lambs and small stock, in some ranching areas. They are usually considered pests, for raiding crops and livestock, which makes people shoot and poison them. They are also hunted for bushmeat, captured for the pet trade and can be used for medical research, but victims of urbanization as well, getting hit by cars or electrocuted.

Over 2,000 flamingo chicks were abandoned, when their parents fled to save themselves from the drought, as the dam dried up. The chicks got sent to bird rehabilitation centers, but they were extremely young and many were very weak and dehydrated, and didn't even survive the trip. The birds received round the clock care, and the surviving chicks started growing stronger. This video was shot over a month later, and the remaining flamingos are now out of the woods, and love spending the day outside. In fact, they love it so much that as soon as they are out, they start doing the most adorable happy dance! Still highly uncoordinated, they run, jump, and flap their wings in excitement! It does not get much cuter than this! The Lesser Flamingo (Phoeniconaias minor) is the smallest species of flamingo, and occurs in sub-Saharan Africa and from the Arabian Peninsula to Pakistan and India. They make extensive movements in response to environmental conditions, and are partially migratory. The Lesser Flamingo is one of the only two species of Old World Flamingos, along with the Greater Flamingo (Phoenicopterus roseus). Both species used to belong to the same genus, Phoenicopterus, which they shared with the Chilean Flamingo (Phoenicopterus chilensis), the American Flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber), the Andean flamingo (Phoenicopterus andinus), and the James's flamingo (Phoenicopterus jamesi). However, in 2014, a publication reclassified the six species into three genera: the Lesser Flamingo was moved to the Phoeniconaias genus, of which it is the only member; and the Andean and James's Flamingos are now in the Phoenicoparrus genus, as Phoenicoparrus andinus, and Phoenicoparrus jamesi, respectively. Lesser Flamingos have a highly specialized diet, feeding almost exclusively on microscopic blue-green algae, and benthic diatoms, although they can also eat small aquatic invertebrates. In spite of its blue-green color, the algae contain beta carotene, a reddish-orange pigment that gives flamingos their pink coloration.

This adorable meerkat used to be kept as a pet until his owner realized that's not a good idea. Now, being very used to people, there is nothing he loves more in the world than cuddles!

This adorable ocelot was another victim of the wildlife traffic, but was lucky enough to be rescued and taken to a Wildlife Refuge. He lives with a thin female, but he is too lazy to exercise and became a very chubby cat. He does enjoy playing though, as long as he gets to do so while lying down. The Ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) is a small wild cat, but it is the biggest member of the genus Leopardus, which also includes the Margay (Leopardus wiedii), the Northern Tiger Cat (Leopardus tigrinus), the Andean Mountain Cat (Leopardus jacobita), the Kodkod (Leopardus guigna), the Geoffroy's Cat (Leopardus geoffroyi), the Pampas Cat (Leopardus colocolo), and the Southern Tiger Cat (Leopardus guttulus). It is native to the Americas and can be found in various habits, such as tropical forests, thorn scrub regions, savannah grasslands, marshes and mangrove forests. It is widely distributed, from northern Argentina to the southwestern United States, and it's the most common cat species throughout much of its range. At the moment the main threats for ocelots are habitat loss and fragmentation, retaliatory killing for depredation of poultry, and the illegal trade of pets and fur. After drugs and weapons, the illegal wildlife trade is the third most valuable illicit commerce in the world. Only one out of ten trafficked animals survive! Do not support the pet trade; do not buy wildlife products! Wild animals should be wild and free!

Sometimes everyone just needs some attention, meerkats included. Watch these friendly little guys run back and forth in hopes of getting some attention from the observers. As soon as one gets what they want, the other follows suit by seeking attention from the same person at the same time the other one is getting head rubs. Can't say that we blame them! It's rare to see meerkats engage in this type of behavior, but boy are they ever cute. They both look so satisfied and content while getting their head rubbed. It resembles the face of one getting the itch that they can't scratch. Don't you just want to pick them up and cuddle with them all day? So cute! Meerkats are usually found in southern-Africa, known for their cute looks, and their hunting abilities to locate plants, animals, and insects, making them omnivores. Check out these cute meerkats begging for attention from on-lookers!

This tayra, an omnivorous animal from the weasel family, was rescued and kept in a very small enclosure for three months. So when he arrives at the animal refuge he just loves his new enclosure, particularly the rope!

Even though this neo-tropical otter can swim any time he wants, there's nothing he likes more than coming to the gate during cleaning time to get sprayed by the water hose!