Cuteness Overload starring Knut the Polar Bear

Just move along if you're a Grumpy Gus who doesn't go awwwww at the sight of kitties and doggies and baby polar bears, oh my! Today's post is strictly for fellow fans of the overwhelmingly adorable Cute Overload. Sometimes, you just need a little cute and corny in your life.

I do visit the site a lot, but what got me there recently started with a news item about net superstar Knut, the Polar Bear born at the Berlin Zoo six months ago. The first polar bear born there for 33 years.

A great start if you're not familiar with Knut, is Cute Knut: Berlin's Baby Polar Bear, which has quite the collection of articles, videos, and pics.

And here are some YouTube vids, beginning with this one taken back in February when he was a couple of months old. Background music is "He's So Fine" by The Chiffons, and "The Bear Necessities" from Disney's "The Jungle Book":








And this one contains various videos taken by a zoo visitor of Knut and his handler, Thomas, frolicking for the audience (not sure of the timeline, I'd say he's about 3-4 months old here):








This video really gives you a feel for the Knutmania that has gripped Berlin. Just look at the lineup on a rainy day! And all that money changing hands for stuffed toys, DVDs, etc. You can see how much he's grown, and getting to be quite the handful. Comparing his size to a short clip I found taken two weeks ago, he's about 5 months old here.

The info's in German, so I have no idea what the added thought balloon or the animal messages near the end say, hope it's clean!:








Is he not adorable? I have a thing for polar bears and penguins myself. Maybe I was an Inuit in a previous life. Continuing our cute cavalcade, from the funny and irreverent (not sure kids should read it) The Cat Blog - Pippy Style comes this wacky begging video. I think the poor cat could use some professional help!








Now I'd like you to meet Vladimir Punikki, an orange tabby in Finland that is born to pose for his lucky owner, Henna. This is her Cold Winter Day 19.2.2007 album. Click the name to see him in his full glory.






Just so the dog lovers don't feel left out, here's a cute and funny vid of a dog and cat set to the Bee Gees' "Stayin' Alive":






For a change of pace, here's a pretty awesome video of monkeys in Bali opening plastic bottles of water. Watch it, then explain to me again how Darwin wasn't spot on. Scary how human they are:






And, finally, my vote for The Cutest Video Ever Seen! Dig these otters at the Vancouver Aquarium holding hands as they drift around their pool. Do not miss the end where they find each other and one appears to smooch the other's teeny little paw:






That oughta hold ya for the weekend, see you next week, kids!