The Daily Beast - May 7, 2013

In this undated photo provided by The Toledo Zoo, baby polar bears Suka and Sakari are seen at The Toledo Zoo in Toledo, Ohio. The male and female cubs, born in November 2012, are on display at the zoo for the first time and were named after a naming contest that drew hundreds of votes. (AP Photo/The Toledo Zoo)

The Daily Beast - May 6, 2013

A 7-year-old white tiger sits with one of her cubs at Tobu Zoo in Miyashiro, near Tokyo, May 2, 2013. Four newborn white tiger cubs made their first public appearance at the zoo. The four cubs - one female and three males - were born 46 days ago. (AP Photo/Koji Sasahara)

The Daily Beast - Horse Saved From Slaughter, Goes on to Win Big

THE CANADIAN PRESS

CICERO, Ill. - He may never run for the Kentucky Derby roses, but Illinois race horse Magna Fortuna and his owners are celebrating a victory nonetheless — his survival.

 

AP Photo/Courtesy Four Footed Fotos

Magna Fortuna, with jockey Julio Felix up, rides to a 9 3/4-length win during a horse race at Hawthorne Park in Cicero, Ill., March 13, 2013.

AP Photo/Courtesy Four Footed Fotos

Magna Fortuna, with jockey Julio Felix up, is walked on the track after winning a race by 9 3/4 lengths during a horse race at Hawthorne Park in Cicero, Ill.

His mother Lulu was purchased for $300 at a slaughter auction by Gail Vacca, founder and president of the Illinois Equine Rescue Center. Vacca found out later that Lulu was pregnant when purchased

The 3-year-old gelding's name means "great luck," and he was a long shot when he won a recent race at Hawthorne Race Course outside Chicago.

 

AP Photo/Courtesy Four Footed Fotos

Julio Felix celebrates in the winner's circle with owners after riding Magna Fortuna to a 9 3/4-length victory during a race at Hawthorne Park in Cicero, Ill. Gail Vacca, center, the founder and president of the Illinois Equine Rescue Center, purchased the horse's mother at a slaughter auction and later found out the horse was pregnant with Magna Fortuna. Celebrating in the photo are members of Rescue Me Racing, a team of 16 partners who each own a share of the horse.

 

After the foal was born, Vacca traced his lineage back to an impressive sire — a $2.58 million career stakes winner.

Vacca and others from the equine centre formed a partnership, Rescue Me Racing, and some of Magna Fortuna's winnings go back to the rescue.

 Watch video here

The Daily Beast - May 3, 2013

Kumbuka, a 15-year-old western lowland gorilla, explores his new enclosure in ZSL London Zoo on May 2, 2013 in London, England. The silverback male, who weights 185 kg and stands seven foot tall, moved from Paignton Zoo two weeks ago. It is hoped that Kumbuka will mate with the zoo's three female gorillas to increase numbers of the critically endangered species as part of the European breeding programme.  (Photo by Oli Scarff/Getty Images)

The Daily Beast - May 2, 2013

Cubs of Tia, a lioness, huddle close together in their enclosure in the Emmen Zoo in Emmen, The Netherlands, on April 26, 2013. The four cubs were born on 7 April 2013. AFP PHOTO/ CATRINUS VAN DER VEEN

The Daily Beast - May 1, 2013

A red panda rests on a branch on April 25, 2013 at the zoo in Nuremberg, Germany. AFP Photo /  Daniel Karmann

The Daily Beast April 30, 2013

A hare sits on a field near hanover, central Germany, on April 22, 2013.Hares are very fast-moving animals, the European brown hare is able to run at speeds of up to 56 km/h (35 mph). AFP PHOTO / JULIAN STRATENSCHULTE

The Daily Beast April 29, 2013

An alligator crosses the 14th fairway during the first round of the PGA Tour Zurich Classic golf tournament at TPC Louisiana in Avondale, La., April 25, 2013. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

The Daily Beast - April 28, 2013

A visitor holds a butterfly in hand during the opening of a 80 square-meter greenhouse ''Farfalle & co" dedicated to butterflies at the bioparco zoo on April 19, 2013 in Rome. AFP PHOTO / TIZIANA FABI

The Daily Beast - Bad Hair Day at the Alpaca Farm - April 26, 2013

REUTERS/Michaela Rehle

A combination of six pictures shows freshly shorn alpacas in the village of Winklarn near Regensburg, April 22, 2013. The alpacas are always shorn in spring, to make the animals more comfortable for the summer.

 

REUTERS/Michaela Rehle

Alpacas stand in their barn in the village of Winklarn near Regensburg April 22, 2013.

 

REUTERS/Michaela Rehle

Two Alpacas wait to be shorn in their barn in the village of Winklarn near Regensburg April 22, 2013.

 

REUTERS/Michaela Rehle

Farmer Sonja Turban shears an alpaca in the village of Winklarn near Regensburg April 22, 2013.

 

REUTERS/Michaela Rehle

Freshly shorn alpacas are pictured on a meadow in the village of Winklarn near Regensburg April 22, 2013.