Paw Nation

Kit was only five weeks old when she arrived at the Monterey Bay Aquarium in California in January after being stranded in nearby Morro Bay. This pup recently joined an exhibition at the Aquarium as their youngest sea otter ever.

Here you see her playing with Mae, the 9-year old otter who is showing her the ropes. If after watching this video you want to see more of these cute creatures (like we did) you can go to the Aquarium's live Sea Otter Web Cam which broadcasts daily.

When a stray cat strutted into her life last summer, Judy Danchura of Canada could not have imagined how the orange and white tomcat she nicknamed Sumo would end up saving her life. Whether it was by accident or by design, we'll leave up to you to decide. But without question, Sumo's actions alerted Danchura to a tumor growing in her breast, enabling her to get an early diagnosis of cancer and begin treatment, reports CBC News. Here's how it happened.

Last June, according to CBC News, Danchura noticed the orange-and-white cat moseying around her backyard. She put some food out for him and went about her day. At 3 a.m., the cat came back, meowing so insistently that Danchura let the stray into her house. After making a litter box, Danchura went back to bed.

"While she and her husband slept," reports CBC News. "The cat hopped onto the bed and walked across her body. As it stepped on her breast, Danchura was struck by an unusual shot of pain."

"I sort of went, 'Oh geez, there's definitely something wrong there,'" Danchura tells CBC News. In fact, there was a lump in her breast.

She went to the doctor and learned it was a tumor, and that it was malignant. Because it had been detected early, and she began treatment immediately, Danchura's chance of survival is estimated at 95 percent, reports CBC News.

Danchura has come to regard Sumo as her four-footed angel. "I sometimes feel overwhelmed because I feel humbled," she tells CBC News. "I can't understand why this animal turned up for me." Was it a random stroke of luck that Sumo visited her home, insisting to be let in? Or was Sumo meant to tell her something?

Tell us what you think Can animals sense illness in their owners? Do you believe that Sumo's actions were just good fortune or something more?

We're suckers for cute animal movies. Show us a film featuring a fuzzy puppy wreaking havoc while worming its adorable way into a lead character's jaded/bitter/frozen heart, and we'll gladly give you two hours of our time. That is, as long as a box of tissues is nearby.

(Don't you judge us. Name the last animal movie you saw that didn't get you a little choked up!)

Naturally,we jumped at the chance to preview a DVD of "Hachi: A Dog's Tale" starring Richard Gere and directed by "Chocolat" auteur Lasse Hallström. The film is based on the true story of an Akita named Hachiko, who lived in Japan in the early 20th century, and is a remake of a 1987 Japanese film called "Hachikō Monogatari." The story begins when Hachi, a little lost puppy, is rescued by professor Parker Wilson (Gere), much to the chagrin of Wilson's wife, Cate (Joan Allen). But of course it doesn't take long before the whole family falls for the adorable pooch. And when tragedy strikes, the entire town realizes the depth of Hachi's devotion to his master.

The story is told from the dog's perspective, though the viewer remains aware of what occurs outside of Hachi's frame of reference. Some shots even present the world through the dog's eyes. And while Hachi's thoughts aren't narrated, Hallström clearly communicates Hachi's emotions to the audience in a way that evokes a devoted dog owner's ability to sense what a beloved canine is thinking.

Anyone who loves animals and has experienced the loyalty a dog shows its owner will understand just how moving this story is. And while that tissue box may very well prove necessary, the film successfully touches hearts without resorting to sappy sentimentality.

"Hachi" is out today on DVD and Blu-ray. Will you be bringing home a copy for your family?

If it were up to animal rights group, PETA, the world's most famous and beloved polar bear, Knut at the Berlin Zoo, would be castrated.

"Knut is sharing his quarters with another polar bear named Giovanna, who is his cousin," states PETA on its Web site, adding that Knut and Giovanna (whose nickname is Gianna) share the same grandfather. To avoid any possibility that the pair will mate and produce inbred offspring, PETA's Germany chapter is demanding that Knut be castrated.

"If Knut and Giovanna were to have any offspring, it could threaten the genetic diversity of Germany's polar bear population, and the new bears could be susceptible to a condition known as 'incest depression,'" says PETA, citing expert Frank Albrecht.

For all his celebrity -- he was photographed for Vanity Fair by Annie Leibovitz, for example -- Knut has had a tough life. First, his mother -- a retired circus animal, according to People -- rejected Knut and his twin brother after giving birth in December 2006. Then Knut's twin brother died of a fungal infection. Knut was left alone to be hand-raised by humans. He managed to form an attachment to his devoted trainer, Thomas Dörflein, only to have Dörflein suddenly die in 2008.

"Is it Spring yet? I'm ready to hit the beach!"

Congratulations to our submitter, poochitoutou. If you'd like to submit your pet, upload your favorite pet photos to our Flickr pool!