Random Acts of Kindness by Animals. Stephanie LaLand

grew older, her health failed and for awhile she was boarded at the Melbourne Zoo. But solitude did not agree with her and she worsened. She missed her human friends and the other circus elephants and started wasting away. The zoo, which her handlers had meant to be a rest home, was only a prison for her. She was dying, not just of old age, but of loneliness, too. Finally, a trailer truck was sent to the zoo to bring her back. Alice sensed she would soon see her friends, but even before the other elephants could see her, they picked up her scent and excitedly trumpeted their welcome. Alice trumpeted back, nearly wild with anticipation of seeing her friends again.

      Back in the herd at last, Alice immediately responded by fondly caressing the others with her trunk. Her listlessness fell away as if by magic; a sprightliness returned to her step. However, Alice never worked or performed again; her health would not permit it. For three years, until April of 1956 when she died, Alice traveled as “guest of honor” with the circus.

       Racehorses often form bonds with animals of other species, such as a goat or a cat with whom they share a stable, and will not run well if they are deprived of their friends' company.

      Washoe, a female chimpanzee, was the first of her species to be taught sign language. One day, a new chimpanzee was introduced to Washoe's compound. The newcomer panicked, jumped over an electric fence, and landed in the moat surrounding the compound. To the keeper's surprise, Washoe followed, also braving the electric fence, and landed on a strip of land alongside the moat. Reaching into the moat, she pulled the frightened newcomer to safety.

      The kind chimpanzee would have made a good mother, but unfortunately, it was not to be, for Washoe's attempts at motherhood ended in tragedy. She had a baby that died four hours after birth because of a defective heart. Three years later, she had another baby that died of pneumonia after two months. Washoe became depressed.

      The researchers working with the unhappy Washoe decided to try to find a baby chimp for her to adopt. They located a ten-month-old chimpanzee and had it shipped to them for Washoe to mother. When the researcher signed, “I have a baby for you,” Washoe displayed great excitement. She stood, puffing up her fur, hooting, and displaying the sign for “baby” repeatedly.

      When she finally met the youngster, she was miserable. It was obvious she had been hoping that the humans had somehow revived her own baby. Her fur flattened back down and she refused to pick the baby up. She showed no interest in the newcomer and would only lethargically sign “baby.” After an hour, her heart began to open up to the little one and she tried to get him to play with her. By nightfall, she was coaxing him to sleep in her arms. At first he refused, but by the next morning they were seen cuddled up together.

      Eventually she and the other chimpanzees in their group taught him fifty hand positions of sign language without any help from humans.

       Washoe's own made-up word for watermelon was “drink-fruit.”

       Chimpanzees have been observed to sit and watch particularly beautiful sunsets together. In one case, they were even seen to be holding hands.

      A thief thought he was very clever to break into the circus office and steal the circus' money. But as he left the office with his bag of loot in hand, he was shocked as an elephant's trunk snaked out of nowhere, tightened around his torso, and hoisted him into the air. The thief was held in the air by the vigilant elephant until the police arrived and the money was handed over. The next day newspapers carried pictures of the sheriff pretending to pin his own badge on the crime-stopping elephant.

       “In my humble opinion the intelligence of the elephant…is superior to all land mammals, except, perhaps the human animal, and sometimes I have my doubts about humans.”

       —George Lewis

      Bibs the canary lived with an elderly lady who had a niece who lived next door and checked on her each night to make sure she was all right. A warm and sweet friendship had blossomed between the old woman and the tiny bird. At breakfast each morning, they shared toast and Bibs liked to sip whatever beverage the woman was having.

      One rainy night, seeing that her aunt's lights were on and assuming everything was fine, the niece retired with her husband for the night rather than going over to the aunt's house. As the couple relaxed cozily by a fire, they were startled by an odd tapping at the window.

      At first they assumed it was a windblown branch, but the tapping grew louder and continued persistently, followed by a strange cry. Finally, the niece went to the window, pulled back the curtains and found Bibs, who had been furiously beating on the window and chirping.

      The tiny yellow bird had escaped from the aunt's house and flown through the storm to the next house. There it had pecked at the window with such desperate fury that it collapsed in exhaustion and died before their eyes. Now completely alarmed, the niece and her husband raced over to the aunt's house.

      They found the old lady lying unconscious on the floor in a pool of blood. She had slipped and fallen, striking her head on a table corner. Her niece rushed her to the hospital.

      Because of her little bird's loyalty and determination to get help, even at the sacrifice of his own life, the woman's life was saved.

       Gratitude is an emotion often assumed to belong exclusively to humans. However it is so common in parrots that cunning parrot-traders often create a dangerous or frightening situation for parrots just so they can rescue them from it. The parrots then mistakenly give their love and trust to the dealers and are easier to control.