Your morning adorable: Three bumps -- er, Siberian tiger cubs -- on a log

Germany's Nuremberg Zoo welcomed Rangar, Khan and Domur, Siberian tiger cubs, back in August. Since Siberian tigers (also called Amur tigers) are endangered -- it's believed that only about 400 to 500 animals remain in the wild in eastern Russia and parts of China and North Korea -- these three healthy cubs have given the zoo great cause for celebration.

Siberian tigers are the largest of the tiger subspecies still in existence today. There were once eight subspecies, but three (the Caspian tiger, Javan tiger and Bali tiger) became extinct during the 20th century.  The five remaining subspecies are all considered endangered.

More photos of Rangar, Khan and Domur after the jump!

Your morning adorable: Clever tortoise's home invasion strategy

We couldn't believe our eyes when we first saw this video; once we convinced ourselves that what we were seeing was real, all we could think was that we've been entirely too lax in dismissing reptiles as potential home-invasion threats.  (We're only marginally comforted by the fact that, should one of these creatures manage to break in and steal something from us, we could probably catch up with it.)

We're deeply impressed by this crafty tortoise and its deft maneuvering of its front legs! 

-- Lindsay Barnett

Video: Pettubedotcom via YouTube

Your morning adorable: Walk like a man, giant panda

How do you prepare giant pandas for mating season?  Well, if you're the staff of the Shaanxi Wild Animal Rescue and Research Center in China's Shaanxi province, you start by strength-training.

So how do you strength-train a panda?

Apparently, you teach him to walk on his hind legs, a mode of locomotion he probably wouldn't try on his own. The method may seem strange, but we're not inclined to scoff -- after all, giant pandas are so endangered that it's believed there are fewer than 2,000 of them left in the wild, so any effort to help the species survive seems worthwhile (even if it does look a little odd).

After the jump, check out more photos of this fellow, an 18-month-old male, getting the hang of walking upright!

Your morning adorable: Dog adopts lion cub in Hungarian zoo

Zimba, a 3-month-old lion cub, is one of the most popular residents at Hungary's Gyoengyoes Zoo, according to the Sun.  Since the cub's arrival (the zoo received him as a gift from a private Italian donor), he's had an unusual companion in the form of Bogi, a 3-year-old male puli.  (We know what you're thinking: Where are Bogi's cords?  While many puli owners -- and owners of a related breed, the komondor -- choose to let their dogs' fur grow naturally into cords, others keep their coats brushed instead. While they look less like a Beck album cover that way, we bet they're easier to dry after a bath!)

Bogi has taken on the role of foster parent for Zimba, who came to the zoo without his mother. Fortunately for Zimba, he has a doting little herding dog to pick up the slack!  See another photo of these two after the jump.

Your morning adorable: One giant leap for a penguin in Antarctica

"Who says penguins can't fly?" submitter kkcondon wonders -- and after seeing this great shot, we're beginning to wonder the same thing. We know penguins are unable to fly (despite what the BBC may have told us on a recent April Fool's Day), but this one sure does seem to be getting some hang time!

Antarctica's Cuverville Island, where kkcondon captured this photo, is home to a large colony of gentoo penguins like this fellow. Gentoos are distinguishable by the white, crownlike markings atop their heads and by their vividly colored beaks. 

-- Lindsay Barnett

Photo: kkcondon / Your Scene

Your morning adorable: Monkeys cool off with frozen fruit in Sao Paulo

A white-handed gibbon from the Sao Paulo Zoo Foundation eats monkey-friendly ice cream -- a frozen fruit wedge on a string. Temperatures rose to 86 degrees Fahrenheit this week in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and the zoo fed its gibbons and black-faced spider monkeys these frozen treats for sweet relief.

More photos of the fruit-eating primates after the jump!

Your morning adorable: Bichon frise or snowball? You be the judge

The question before us is: Is this a bichon frise, or is it a strangely lifelike clump of snow?  The only thing making us lean toward the former is the fact that it's wearing a sweater. 

We love this little fellow's spunk, but we don't envy his owner for the extensive cleanup we're sure followed this display!

RELATED:
Your morning adorable: Dog + giant ball + snow = fun!

-- Lindsay Barnett

Video credit: nhcorn via YouTube

Your morning adorable: Deer uses the pet door

We've heard of wildlife -- raccoons, mostly -- entering private homes using pet doors intended for dogs or cats.  (Clearly, these are homes equipped with plain old pet doors rather than the considerably more high-tech Plexidor Pet Door.)  But a deer using a pet door?  Now that's a new one.

We're not sure what impresses us the most about this talented fawn: Its chutzpah or its flexibility! 

-- Lindsay Barnett

Video: Pettubedotcom via YouTube

Your morning adorable: San Diego Zoo's giant panda cub is growing up (and will soon have a name)

The San Diego Zoo reports that its male giant panda cub, born in early August, is "definitely hitting all the panda milestones," making gains in weight (more than a pound in just the last week, for a current total of 11.7 pounds) and length (24.8 inches from head to tail). 

The zoo held a contest last month to allow the panda-loving public to offer their name suggestions for the cub, who, in accordance with Chinese tradition, won't be officially named until he's 100 days old.  After the submission period was over, keepers, veterinarians, scientists and other zoo staff chose five favorites from the entries. Next, the Chinese Wildlife Conservation Assn. had to approve the five proposed names, and with that done, the zoo allowed visitors to its website and Facebook fan page to vote for their favorite name.

Voting is now over -- the zoo says it received nearly 18,000 votes -- but the suspense continues, because the winning name won't be announced until a Nov. 17 naming ceremony. The five name finalists are Xiǎo Lóng ("Little Dragon"), Xióng Wěi ("Extraordinary Bear"), Fú Shèng ("Blissful San Diego"), Yǒng Xiǎng ("Eternally Blessed") and Yún Zǐ ("Son of Cloud").

RELATED:
Veterinary exam reveals San Diego Zoo's giant panda cub is a healthy male
Can't get enough of the San Diego Zoo's giant panda cub? Meet your new friend, Panda Cam

-- Lindsay Barnett

Photo: The as-yet-unnamed cub at his 13-week veterinary exam. Credit: Ken Bohn / AFP/Getty Images

Your morning adorable: Orphaned baby sloths get an assist from Costa Rica sanctuary

Talk about specialized -- the Aviarios Sloth Sanctuary in Costa Rica rescues and rehabilitates sloths, sloths and only sloths. Back in 1992 neighbors of the sanctuary's bird-enthusiast founders brought an orphaned baby three-toed sloth to their doorstep. With little information available about caring for sloths, the fine folks of Aviarios made things up as they went along, successfully hand-raising the baby they named Buttercup. 

After that, the sloths just kept on coming. So far, Aviarios has hand-raised more than 100 baby sloths and helped many more adult sloths recover from illness and injury at its wonderfully named Slothpital facility. (Since sloths are slow-moving -- so slow-moving that algae even grows on their fur -- it's not uncommon for them to be injured by cars.) Sloth orphans like the astoundingly cute creatures above get great care at the Slothpital and, thanks to Aviarios, they have great lives to look forward to.

Aviarios offers tours to the public -- and sloth fans can even "adopt" an animal, with their financial contributions funding further care and conservation efforts for Costa Rica's sloths.  

-- Lindsay Barnett

Video: BernieKnightRider via YouTube