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5 animal celebrities we all love

by Nicholas Yong

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Tama has died. But the feline who brought fame to Japan’s Kishigawa Line after being appointed the Kishi station’s ‘stationmaster’ will not be easily forgotten.

Tama, who wandered the station in a railway hat and collar, attracted thousands of visitors. She’s even credited with saving the station from financial ruin.

And she’s not the only animal celebrity who has captured the hearts of humans. Here are five animal celebrities whose fame has spread far and wide.

1. Hachiko

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Arguably the first celebrity animal, the story of Hachiko has endured through the decades as one of enduring loyalty and faithfulness. It’s even spawned two movies and two commemorative statues.

The Akita dog made a habit of waiting at Shibuya station in Tokyo for his owner to come home from work. His owner died suddenly in 1925 of a cerebral hemorrhage.

But Hachiko never stopped waiting. Till the day he died in 1935. he would appear faithfully at the station, at the exact moment when his master’s train would pull in.

2. Marutaro

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(Photo source: @marutaro)

A product of the social media age, Marutaro has been dubbed the most popular dog on Instagram, with 1.7 million followers. His fame has spawned books, interviews and even adoring tour groups who travel specially to meet him.

So what makes the shiba inu so popular? As Marutaro ‘said’ in an interview with Okinawa: “I smile a lot and I think people feed on that positive energy. It’s a simple, but profound connection that we all need.”

3. Paul the octopus

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A boon to gamblers everywhere, Paul gained fame during the 2010 World Cup for his apparent uncanny ability to predict the results of matches.

The then-resident of the Sea Life Aquarium in Oberhausen, Germany correctly predicted the results of all six of Germany’s matches. It also picked Spain - correctly - as the eventual champions.

Paul made his predictions by picking food from glass cases containing flags of two opposing teams. He died in Oct 2010.

4. Knut the polar bear

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Knut’s was a flame that burned bright, but ever so briefly. Born at the Berlin Zoo in 2006 to a mother who rejected him, Knut’s twin brother died shortly after.

But Knut amazed zoo staff by clinging to life, and quickly became the zoo’s top attraction. At the height of his fame in 2007, he even featured on the cover of Vanity Fair with actor Leonardo Dicaprio.

Knut died suddenly in 2011 in front of 600 visitors, amid fears that he was becoming too dependent on human contact.

5. Ah Meng the orangutan

She met celebrities as varied as Elizabeth Taylor, Prince Philip and Steve Irwin. Her fame was such that The Telegraph dubbed her “the world’s most famous orangutan”.

She was Singapore’s very own Ah Meng, A fixture at the Singapore Zoo since 1971, the Sumatran orangutan attracted thousands of visitors who wanted to have breakfast with her.

Ah Meng died in 2008. A life-sized bronze statue now stands at the zoo in tribute.

Source: Rocketnews, Buzzfeed, Daily Mail, NPR