Celebrity Pets

If you're like me, you spent countless hours with your friends in junior high poring over the Guinness Book of World Records. Remember the guy with the world's longest fingernails? Or the world's heaviest twins, sitting on their motorcycles? So weird.

Recapture that old magic with the "Guinness World Records 2012 Edition." There's plenty of weird and gnarly stuff to entertain you, and if you're an animal lover (Why would you be here if you're not?), you'll get a special kick out of the great pet records too.

Harbor is an 8-year-old purebred black and tan coonhound from Colorado whom you'll find in this latest edition of the Guinness book. What exactly did Harbor do to earn a place among Guinness's world-record holders? Just look at the photo! At 12.25 inches and 13.5 inches, Harbor's dog ears are the longest in the world!

According to Harbor's owner, Jennifer Wert, Harbor's ears bring him almost constant attention from strangers, and he's often asked to stop for photos. "Most days I forget how oddly long his ears are," Wert says. "He's a phenomenon in the world and he creates smiles wherever we go."

Interestingly, Harbor's ears aren't designed for super hearing, but for super smelling. When Harbor walks about, his enormous ears flap around in a way that sweeps scents toward his nose for enhanced olfactory detection.

To see Harbor and other record-breaking animals, check out Guinness World Records 2012, available in the U.S. on September 15 for the suggested retail price of $28.95. The 2012 eBook version will launch on November 28.

Superstition! It's a big part of sports. Athletes of all stripes are superstitious. Maybe you're a pitcher who doesn't talk about a no-hitter during a no-hitter. Maybe you're a goalie who doesn't shave his beard or change his socks during the playoffs. Maybe you're Wade Boggs, and had so many superstitions that it was bananas. Or maybe you're Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic, and you just want your best friend around when you play in the top tennis tournaments in the world.

Djokovic suffered a major bummer last month at Wimbledon when his poodle, Pierre, was denied entry to the UK by those dog-hating Brits. The tennis star had to play without his pooch by his side. Outrage! Luckily, now it's US Open time, and if there's one thing that's true about America, it's that we love our pets. That's probably why Djokovic was seen with Pierre last week in New Jersey, according to the New York Post. This is America, Jack. We're not about to tell the world's No. 1 tennis pro that he can't bring his companion animal with him across our borders. All dogs are welcome here! USA! USA!

Former Spice Girl and current famous-for-being-famous person Victoria Beckham went nanners on Twitter Sunday due to a very special new addition to the Beckham family: a new puppy! The dog's name is Scarlet and she's a French bulldog, according to Beckham's tweets. "David loves little Scarlet!!!!she is so cute!!!!!!x," tweeted Beckham, referring to her husband, internationally celebrated soccer player, David Beckham. Scarlet should make good company for the Beckhams' other pet, English bulldog Coco. Both dogs can be seen in the photo above, included with Beckham's enthusiastic tweets.

NBA star Carmelo Anthony would have us believe he owns a pet camel. The news came in the form of a tweet from Anthony on Monday. "Everybody got dogs and cats as pets, I got a camel!" Well, stranger things have happened, especially when it comes to the baller indulgences of the rich and famous. The photo linked to in the tweet would provide further evidence to Melo's announcement being valid, but then again, that could be anyone's camel. If his claim is true, there's no word on the animal's name. Our suggestion? Camel-o Anthony. Duh.


Carmelo Anthony on WhoSay

Everyone knows that in the modern age, the British royal family is essentially a powerless decoration, but that doesn't mean there's an end to the list of things they get that you and I can never have. Case in a point: a baby endangered penguin. We can say with almost 100-percent certainty that nobody reading this ever received that for a wedding gift.

Yet a baby Humbolt penguin named Acorn is exactly what the Chester Zoo in Cheshire, England gave to the new Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (aka Prince William and Kate Middleton). Of course, Acorn will not actually live with Willy and Kate, but instead will continue its residence at the Chester Zoo. That takes some of the fun out of adopting a penguin, but goes a long way in making sure the penguin stays alive and happy.

The Chester Zoo used social networks to allow its followers to choose which of the zoo's 400 species should be gifted to the royal couple. With more than 20 percent of the total vote, Acorn handily beat out Rothschild giraffes, African painted dogs, royal starlings, a grey crowned crane and a black rhinoceros.

"It's a real honor to be able to boast Prince William and Kate as penguin adopters," a zoo spokesperson said in a press release. "And hopefully the happy couple will come and see little Acorn playing in his pool very soon." We're sure they will, as soon as they're back from their honeymoon.