Australia’s Oldest Man at 109 Knits Adorable Sweaters for Penguins

Alfie Date began knitting in 1932 when he was just twenty-six years old, but it wasn’t until 2013 when Australia’s oldest man started knitting sweaters for Phillip Island’s little penguin population.

The penguins, who were still being affected by an oil spill that occurred in 2001, had been unintentionally swallowing dangerous chemicals as they attempted to clean the oil off their feathers. When he heard about the Penguin Foundation of Phillip Island’s call for knitters to create “jumpers” for the flightless birds, the 109-year-old Alfie put his eighty-plus years of experience to work.

Phillip Island is home to about 32,000 little penguins. They are the smallest penguins in the world, and the only species with blue (rather than black) and white feathers as an adult.

Their feathers are waterproof when clean, but when oiled they can separate and leave the penguin open to exposure. The sweaters, besides preventing the penguins from swallowing toxic oil, keep the little penguins warm, dry, and snuggly, and ultimately keep them alive.

Man's Seeing Eye Dog Has Eye Troubles of His Own

Ronald Henry's guide dog Kehotay has been by his side for the last eight years, but now it's the golden retriever who needs a helping hand.

Kehotay helps Henry get around because Henry lost his sight and hearing several years ago. But now the 10-year-old golden retriever is having eye troubles of his own.

"I've been worried sick about him," Henry told ABC's Nebraska affiliate KETV. "He's my team, my partner."

The dog arrived at veterinarian Dr. Mike Hord's office with a cloudy right eye and corneal ulcers in December. But after the ulcers healed four weeks later, the pressure in the eye had more than tripled, which may be a sign of a bigger problem called pigmentary uveitis, which is common among golden retrievers, Hord said.

Now, Henry and Kehotay are headed to a specialist to make sure the condition isn't more serious, and that Kehotay can keep his right eye.

"They have definitely grown into quite the pair," Hord said, adding that he's been treating Kehotay for the last seven years. "All you have to do is see them together and you can tell that."

Meet Pickles, A 21-Pound, Three-Foot-Long Cat That Was Rescued And Adopted Last Year

Feast your eyes on Pickles, the cat. He's 21-pounds, three-foot-long, and was rescued, and adopted last year.

Nicknamed Catasaurus Rex, Pickles became an Internet sensation after the MSPCA of Boston posted an ad online, seeking a new home for the oversize animal. When Andrew Milicia and his girlfriend Emily Zarvos went to see the cat for themselves, they didn’t expect to fall in love. But that’s just what happened, and now they say he’s an irreplaceable member of their family. “He’s our son, we love him,” Zarvos says with a smile.

Though Pickles doesn’t play well with other cats, he loves cuddling with Zarvos, and taking up half of the family’s three-person couch. And, as you could have probably guessed, he has a large appetite. “He's kind of like a dog when it comes to food—he'll come in and sit right in front of you and just stare at you until the plate’s gone,” his owners shared. But, as Zarvos explained, they don’t mind these quirky habits; “I'm so happy we have him, he's the best pet you could hope for.”

Rescuers Freed a Group of at Least 17 Manatees Stuck in a Mass Stranding in a Storm Drain

Satellite Beach, Florida - Rescuers freed a group of at least 17 manatees stuck in a mass stranding in a storm drain in Satellite Beach, Florida.

Crews from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission, the Satellite Beach Fire Department and Police Department and city utilities worked to access into the culverts where the marine mammals were trapped, so a five-member team from SeaWorld could lift them out and release them back into the water, officials said.

With rain in the forecast, there was concern that the animals stuck in the drain could drown if the culvert were to fill with water.

Manatees, which are very curious, occasionally swim into storm drains, but because the culvert gradually narrows, some larger animals can get wedged and stuck, according to Ann Spellman, a marine biologist with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission.

Even if only one gets physically wedged in the pipe, any others following it can't get out, because they cannot swim backwards and don't have room to turn around.

After the mass stranding was discovered Monday, the city installed grates on the mouth of the culverts in the area to prevent any other manatees from swimming in.