Famous Animals Who Changed The World Forever
History is full of incredible animal stories that have touched people’s hearts. We're talking brave companions who risked it all for their humans, on-screen critters who changed Hollywood forever, and amazing four-legged war heroes. And that’s just the start! So get ready to learn the remarkable stories of some of the best boys and girls of all time. They deserve all the head pats and belly rubs they can get.
1. Togo
The famous husky Balto was the lead dog of one of several husky teams that ran a dangerous baton race across Alaska in 1925. Nome village suffered from an outbreak of diphtheria, threatening the lives of everyone living there.
The village’s children were the most at risk, and the antiserum was 674 miles away. Their only hope lay with the local mushers and their sled dog teams. They had to traverse life-threatening terrain under extreme conditions to have a hope of stopping the outbreak.
Race for life
In a tense mission that nearly failed multiple times, the sled dog teams successfully delivered the antiserum, and Balto was credited as the hero of the hour. Most dog teams ran 31 miles, and Balto and his handler ran the final 53-mile stretch, securing his place in history. But although all the mushers and their teams were heroes, one unsung duo went the extra mile… so to speak.
Togo and his musher Leonhard Seppala not only set out first, but they also covered a vast 264 miles in total! So while it was indeed a group effort, they were the team who traveled the furthest and ran the hardest. Of course, the most important thing is that the medicine saved 10,000 people in Nome.
2. Icarus II
If you’ve heard the saying “pigs might fly,” you’ll be astonished to know that one really did back in 1909 when Icarus II took to the skies thanks to aviator John Moore-Brabazon. He told The Daily Mirror, “I was shooting in the neighborhood when a farmer casually suggested to me that I might take a pig up in my airplane.”
Fittingly, as Moore-Brabazon was the first powered aviator in Britain, six-week-old Icarus II was the first pig to get airborne in the 3.5-mile biplane trip. Moore-Brabazo said, “Though he squealed a little to begin with, my four-legged passenger soon quietened down, and behaved as if he quite realized the importance of the occasion.”
3. Jumbo
After being poached as a calf in 1862 and spending a brief period in a French zoo, Jumbo became the first African elephant in Europe when London Zoo acquired him. It was here that he rose to an unprecedented level of fame that few — if any — animals have enjoyed since!
The beast was incredibly docile around humans, and he would take visitors for rides on his back. It made him the zoo’s biggest draw, with crowds flocking to see him. Queen Victoria and, if you believe the rumors, a young Winston Churchill are among the famous faces who saw Jumbo.