russia.

Meanwhile, in Mother Russia... What does your dog fetch? Your slippers? The newspaper? Big whoop. That's bush league tricks. Why doesn't your dog fetch your drinks for you? Not to play into stereotypes, but these rugged Ruskies don't mess around on their hunting trips. We're sure that dog is great at fetching ducks or whatever game its master is hunting, but it has a more important job to do, namely keeping him warm with their country's signature spirit. Don't forget the vermouth, Fido. ...

*GR*, Flickr Cute Pet Name: Simosha Location: Solnechnogorsk, Russia Age: 8 months Cat Breed: Mixed breed Favorite Toy: Feathers Favorite Treat: Whatever her owner eats. Likes: Siting on her owner's shoulder, laying on her owner's hands. Dislikes: Staying alone for a long time. Fun Fact: She will jump on you when you least expect it. Congratulations to our submitter, *GR*. If you'd like to submit your pet, upload your favorite pet photos to our Flickr pool! ...

Ksyusha the Himalayan may look like a perfectly ordinary, everyday house cat -- until you find her happily curled up inside a pickle jar on your kitchen counter. After a cute/weird photo featuring the kitty chilling out in a large jelly jar emerged online, Ksyusha, the so-called "contortionist cat," is getting worldwide attention. According to Ksyusha's owner, Yuriy Korotun, this very special kitty can often be found fitting her feline frame inside cylindrical objects, including washing machines and jars. And you thought your cat had some strange habits! "She was a special kitten from the beginning -- always very playful," Korotun tells the Daily Mirror. "I came into the kitchen one day to ...

Ahhh, Russia. Home of borscht, vodka, and... ice skating bears? Apparently, grizzly bear ice hockey is something of a national past time in Russia. According to a write up in The New York Times, it works much like traditional hockey, replete with sticks, pucks, numbered jerseys, a jam-packed arena, and a (brave) human referee. Admittedly, the bears spend the bulk of their time looking for the regulation-sized puck, which seems downright diminutive beneath their large legs. This may be news to us, but bears balancing their burly frames on ice skates dates way back to 1962 when the Moscow Circus on Ice played a bear ice hockey game at New York's Madison Square Garden. Watch these grizzlies ...

Thieves in a car-jacking heist drove away with an unlikely bounty -- a rare leopard! AussieGold/Flickr A Russian carjacking turned into a catjacking when the SUV's cargo included a rare leopard."We had been driving all night with the leopard in a travel cage. The plan was to take her to the vet. The driver was fiddling with the cage when two men jumped into the vehicle and threw us out. My suspicion is the theft was done to order," owner Mikhail Barakin told Britain's The Guardian.Barakin, who heads a private television station in Saint Petersburg, was grooming the wild cat to star in TV commercials. He said the one-month-old cub -- a rare Amur Leopard -- is tame, but she's also highly ...