This Maine Coon Cat Is So Massive, He's Almost As Big As His Canine Siblings

You wouldn’t think that a kitten would be bigger than a German Shepherd and a Goldendoodle……..unless, of course, that kitten is a Maine Coon. In the video below, the kitten just sits there with his huge paws and long tail, completely nonchalant. The German Shepherd suspiciously keeps an eye on him, while the Goldendoodle does his usual friendly, unbothered thing. Meanwhile, the Maine Coon acts like he’s the king and the dogs are the peasants. The shocker is that the cat isn’t even done growing. Most cats are basically fully grown within a year or two, but not Maine Coons. They can keep growing until they’re 3-5 years old. Once fully grown, males end up between 13-18 pounds, and females come in around 8-12 pounds. It’s not even their weight that attracts attention. Maine Coons can stretch anywhere from 30-40 inches and stand 10-16 inches tall. So, this kitten — already holding his own next to two fully-grown dogs — still has several years left to grow. The dogs might want to get used to the new hierarchy now, because it’s only going to get more obvious from here.

 

While not the cat in this story, this photo shows how large Maine Coon cats can grow.

 

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Woman Accidentally Swallows AirPod While Taking a Handful of Vitamins

Kaitlyn Moseder found that her rushed morning routine quickly turned into a viral sensation when she accidentally swallowed one of her AirPods while taking a handful daily vitamins. Although she managed to continue with her day, something felt off. She could still feel an object sitting in her esophagus. As Moseder listened to music during her drive, her missing AirPod unexpectedly connected to her phone and the sudden notification made her realize what had happened. "That's when it hit me, and I remembered the moment that I had grabbed my AirPod off of the counter," she said. In shock and disbelief, she quickly called Poison Control. She was assured that the AirPod would likely pass on its own and was advised to monitor for symptoms. When the missing AirPod still hadn’t exited her system after two days, she decided to take a laxative to move things along. Fortunately, an x-ray taken later confirmed that the AirPod was gone, ending the unusual ordeal without medical intervention. The lesson learned? "Slow down, take time for yourself, even for the simple things like taking your vitamins,” said Moseder.

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Why You Should Never Touch a Venus Flytrap

The Venus flytrap is a flowering plant best known for its carnivorous eating habits. The “trap” is made of two hinged lobes at the end of each leaf. On the inner surfaces of the lobes are hair-like projections called trichomes that cause the lobes to snap shut when prey comes in contact with them. Ants, beetles, grasshoppers, flying insects, and spiders are all victims of the flytrap. If you encounter a Venus flytrap, one thing you should never do is touch it. It's not because of what it will do to you, but because of what you could do to it. Triggering the trap wastes the plant’s limited energy. Closing requires significant effort, and if it snaps shut without capturing actual prey, the plant starves. Repeatedly doing this will cause the leaf to die. If the trap closes on something larger than itself — like a finger — it can’t seal properly, and that can lead to bacteria that causes the leaf to rot. So, feel free to admire the Venus flytrap clamping down on its prey, but don't try to mess with it.

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Pickle is the Pumpkin Spice of Summer

Generations of Americans knew where to find pickles: sprinkled on top of their hot dogs, hidden inside hamburger buns, and tucked next to deli sandwiches. Now, people seeking that distinctive briny tang can sip from a pickle lager at a barbecue, douse plain chicken and rice with dill pickle seasoning, and snack on pickle-flavored potato chips by the pool. Brands even sell pickle juice on its own — pickle-free — for use in salty, zingy cocktails or refreshing probiotic supplements. What was once a boring sidekick is now the main character. Thanks to a “pickle renaissance” in the past decade, the humble pickle has become to summer what pumpkin spice is to fall. Unlike pumpkin spice, which has settled in to be such a seasonal cliche that people feel the need to defend it, pickle is still crisp and new. While pickle pops may not hold their place in the freezer case as long as the real thing will endure in the condiment aisle, pickle everything is here to stay.

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