Animals
Texas legislators smell decaying rat
In 1969, a rat died somewhere in the offices of the Texas legislature. This led to the passage of Texas House State Resolution 433:WHEREAS, Some brands of rat poison do cause the rat to leave the building before he dies; and
WHEREAS, The same thing goes for mice; and
WHEREAS, The State of Texas obviously does not use a brand of rat poison that causes rats and mice to leave the building before they die; and
WHEREAS, For the last week and a half, Representatives Jungmichel, Wieting, Ward, McAlister, Allen, Allen of Harris, Jones of Harris, Kubiak, Parker of Jefferson, Cory, Newman, Johnson of Bexar, Kothman, Weldon, Longoria, Ogg and Cummings have unduly suffered mental anguish by having to smell a dead rat; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the heretofore mentioned Representatives hereby go on record as supporting either letting the rats run loose in the Capitol or changing the brand of rat poison.
So what are these brands of rat poison that can make a rat leave the building before it dies? I've never heard of such a thing.
Posted By: Alex - Sat Feb 28, 2015 -
Comments (7)
Category: Animals, Government, 1960s
The Hairy Water Tortoise of China
I cannot figure out if this is a legitimate species, or a freak. This article seems to imply it was a common tortoise with vegetation affixed to its back.
Posted By: Paul - Sat Feb 21, 2015 -
Comments (6)
Category: Animals, Freaks, Oddities, Quirks of Nature, Asia, Nineteenth Century
Eddie the Marshmallow-Eating Alligator
Eddie the Alligator achieved brief fame back in 1966 because of his food preferences. I'm no alligator expert, but I don't think that hand-feeding them marshmallows is recommended by experts.
Posted By: Alex - Wed Feb 18, 2015 -
Comments (7)
Category: Animals, 1960s
Electrocutes then drowns rodents
When it's not enough to kill a mouse just once. Source: Popular Electricity, Nov 1911.
Posted By: Alex - Thu Jan 29, 2015 -
Comments (4)
Category: Animals, Death
Unique Beauty
This unusual specimen was found in Drexel University's butterfly exhibit. The wings on one side are female, while the ones on the other side are male. Beautiful.
Posted By: Alex - Wed Jan 21, 2015 -
Comments (8)
Category: Animals, Cryptozoology
Stockings for Camels
In the early 1960s, Alan Abel ran a long-running hoax involving an organization (The Society for Indecency to Naked Animals) whose members wanted to put clothes on all the naked animals in the world. So I was amused to discover there was a similar, but non-hoax, campaign back in 1926. The "philanthropic Englishwoman" Mrs. F.K. Hosall spearheaded an effort to get women to donate their old stockings so they could be worn by the donkeys and camels of north Africa. However, it wasn't exactly similar, because it sounds like Mrs. Hosall had a sensible reason to put stockings on the camels — to prevent fly bites.Source: The Alamance Gleaner (Graham, N.C.) - Feb 11, 1926.
Posted By: Alex - Tue Jan 20, 2015 -
Comments (7)
Category: Animals, Fashion, 1920s
Civil Defense PSAs
Posted By: Paul - Sun Jan 18, 2015 -
Comments (3)
Category: Animals, Armageddon and Apocalypses, Death, Destruction, PSA’s, 1960s
Skippy the Bush Kangaroo
Sample episode of Skippy below.
Posted By: Paul - Fri Jan 09, 2015 -
Comments (8)
Category: Animals, Television, Children, 1960s, Australia
Fish Eyes
Veterinary staff at Vancouver Aquarium have provided posthetic eyes for a fish. This was done so other fish would not pick it to death because it did not have eyes. So, it seems that humans are not the only species that picks on those who are different.
Posted By: Alex - Thu Jan 08, 2015 -
Comments (8)
Category: Animals, Fish, Eyes and Vision
Tom Edison Jr.‘s Electric Mule
This cover could hardly be improved upon for macabre glee and impartial offensiveness.
Read the story here.
Posted By: Paul - Fri Jan 02, 2015 -
Comments (8)
Category: Animals, Mad Scientists, Evil Geniuses, Insane Villains, Stereotypes and Cliches, Science Fiction, Nineteenth Century
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| Alex Boese Alex is the creator and curator of the Museum of Hoaxes. He's also the author of various weird, non-fiction, science-themed books such as Elephants on Acid and Psychedelic Apes. Paul Di Filippo Paul has been paid to put weird ideas into fictional form for over thirty years, in his career as a noted science fiction writer. He has recently begun blogging on many curious topics with three fellow writers at The Inferior 4+1. Contact Us |