Animals

Garrison Brown's legacy as a cat dad will never be forgotten, as "Sister Wives" fans give buckets of money to the cause near and dear to the late TLC personality ... TMZ has learned.

Liz Olson of High Country Humane tells TMZ ... people from all over the world have donated to the animal shelter in the week since Garrison died by suicide. The cat org received donations totaling more than $13K ... and counting!

She confirms she's the one who alerted Garrison's mother, Janelle Brown, to the outpouring of support ... and then, Janelle shared her emotional reaction this week to that uplifting news.

Garrison and High Country Humane knew each other well -- Liz tells us he adopted 3 of his cats -- including new addition Ms. Buttons -- from the shelter in the last 2 years.

In response to the generosity displayed by Garrison's followers, HCH has launched an initiative in his name that will help cats get adopted throughout the month of March.

Specifically, the money will cover adoption fees for any of the cats rescued during this effort.

The tributes don't stop there ... Liz tells us the org also plans to rename its cat adoption room in his honor. There will be a plaque unveiling and everything at their 5-year anniversary celebration this month.

Ark Cat Sanctuary is also getting monetary support after Garrison's passing. Cat Roberts, yes that's really her name, tells TMZ ... the org's  received more than $500 in donations from people all over the globe, including some in Australia and Scotland.

Cat believes the support from Garrison's fans will help them stay open this year ... after receiving $30K less in grant money for 2024. She says the biggest help has been people purchasing items like wet food and kitten milk replacement from the sanctuary's Amazon wish list.

It's a small silver lining on an otherwise tragic story.

Janelle Brown dice que está conmovida por la emoción después de que los fans honraran a su difunto hijo Garrison, donando dinero a refugios de animales en su nombre, y todo como una forma de destacar su pasión por sus gatos.

La estrella de "Sister Wives" compartió fotos de Garrison y sus gatos en Instagram el martes, diciendo que le saltaron las lágrimas cuando supo que High Country Humane y Ark Cat Sanctuary en Flagstaff, la ciudad natal de Garrison, habían recibido varias donaciones a raíz de su fallecimiento.

Janelle, que tuvo a Garrison y a otros cinco niños con su ex marido Kody Brown, dejó claro que esta era la manera perfecta de honrar a Garrison, quien amaba ser un "papá gato".

Y añadió: "Los gatos que adoptó de ambas agencias eran muy importantes para él".

Recuerden, Garrison había rescatado a un gato de nueve años al que llamó Ms. Buttons justo antes de su muerte a principios de este mes. En ese momento, Garrison compartió que el gato estaba "en la línea para la eutanasia" antes de que él interviniera.

Fuimos los primeros en contarles que Garrison falleció de un aparente suicidio la semana pasada. Como señalamos, la policía dice que su hermano Gabriel fue quien descubrió a Garrison sin vida en su casa.

Más tarde, Janelle confirmó la desgarradora noticia a través de un comunicado a nombre de ella y su ex marido Kody que decía: "Su pérdida dejará un agujero tan grande en nuestras vidas que nos quita el aliento".

Otros homenajes de la familia Brown, que documentó su alguna vez polígamo estilo de vida durante 18 temporadas, también llovieron sobre Garrison.

Solo tenía 25 años.

Que en paz descanse.

Janelle Brown says she's overwhelmed by emotion after fans honored her late son, Garrison, by donating to animal shelters in his name ... all as a way to highlight his pet cats.

The "Sister Wives" star shared photos of Garrison and his cats on Instagram Tuesday ... saying she was brought to tears after learning High Country Humane and Ark Cat Sanctuary in Garrison's hometown of Flagstaff received several donations in the wake of his passing.

Janelle -- who shared Garrison, as well as five other kids, with her ex-husband Kody Brown -- made it clear that this was the perfect way to honor Garrison ... who she said loved being a cat dad."

She adds, "The cats he adopted from both agencies were so important to him."

Remember, Garrison had rescued a nine-year-old cat -- which he named Ms. Buttons -- just before his death earlier this month. At the time, Garrison shared that the cat was "on the line for euthanasia" before he intervened.

We broke the story ... Garrison passed away in an apparent suicide last week. As we noted, cops say his brother Gabriel was the one who discovered Garrison deceased in his home.

Janelle later confirmed the heartbreaking news ... issuing a statement on behalf of herself and her ex-husband, Kody. She wrote ... "His loss will leave such a big hole in our lives that it takes our breath away."

Other tributes from the Brown family -- who documented their once polygamist life for 18 seasons -- soon poured in for Garrison as well.

He was only 25.

RIP

Some ovations defy explanation -- like this crowd on the beach in Venice, Florida watching the gruesome removal of a beached sperm whale, yet erupting in cheers ... all captured on video.

Check out the new footage we obtained showing the massive whale's body being mutilated by an excavator -- definitely not for the faint of heart or stomach -- but a group of beachgoers found reason to hoot, holler and celebrate the process.

The removal was coordinated earlier this week by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration -- also known as NOAA -- along with a local marine lab.

The beached whale was first spotted Sunday evening, and reportedly still alive before dying the next morning, when officials quickly attempted to move the decaying corpse.

This video gives you a closer look at the initial attempt to move the massive mammal, as several onlookers record the scene.

Not surprisingly, some locals were disturbed by the crowd's reaction, and a rep for PETA tells TMZ ... "With the planet’s oceans being trawled barren, the death of any aquatic animal is a high-stakes tragedy, and PETA urges everyone upset at the sight of this beached whale to throw all sealife a lifeline by going vegan."

However, as graphic as the removal is, PETA has no issue with NOAA's process ... telling us it's "standard operating procedure."

The city of Venice was forced to issue a no-swim advisory at the beach due to the carcass -- which might be one reason for the cheers.

Researchers cut into the whale's corpse on Monday, causing blood to leak into the water. Translation: the bloody scene could've attracted sharks to shore, endangering swimmers.

BTW, this whale tale isn't nearly as gruesome as a similar situation that went down back in 1970 ... when a Pacific gray whale washed ashore in Florence, OR. That carcass was blown to smithereens with dynamite, and the end result was beyond explosive.

Algunas ovaciones no tienen explicación, como la de esta multitud en la playa de Venice -Florida- que observa la espantosa extracción de un cachalote varado y, sin embargo, se ponen felices y lo graban en video.

Échale un vistazo a las nuevas imágenes que hemos obtenido en las que se ve cómo una excavadora mutila el enorme cuerpo de la ballena -algo no apto para cardíacos ni estómagos débiles- mientras un grupo de bañistas encontró motivos para gritar y celebrar el proceso.

La retirada fue coordinada a principios de esta semana por la Administración Nacional Oceánica y Atmosférica (NOAA) y un laboratorio marino local.

La ballena varada fue avistada por primera vez el domingo por la noche, y al parecer seguía viva antes de morir a la mañana siguiente, cuando las autoridades intentaron rápidamente trasladar el cadáver en descomposición.

En este video se puede ver de cerca el intento inicial de trasladar al enorme mamífero, mientras varios curiosos graban la escena.

No es sorprendente que algunos lugareños se molestaron por la reacción de la multitud, y un representante de PETA le dice a TMZ: "Con los océanos del planeta siendo arrastrados, la muerte de cualquier animal acuático es una tragedia, y PETA insta a todo el mundo molesto por lo ocurrido a esta ballena varada a hacerse vegano".

Sin embargo, tan gráfica como es la eliminación, PETA no tiene ningún problema con el proceso de la NOAA, diciéndonos que es el "procedimiento estándar".

La ciudad de Venice se vio obligada a emitir un aviso de no nadar en la playa debido al cadáver, lo que podría ser una de las razones de los vítores.

Los investigadores cortaron en el cadáver de la ballena el lunes, causando una gran fuga de sangre en el agua... la sangrienta escena podría haber atraído a los tiburones a la orilla, poniendo en peligro a los nadadores.

El pájaro mascota de una mujer británica es un cantante matutino, y despierta a su dueña con música soul de los 70s... algo que le encanta a todo el mundo en TikTok.

Kiki, una cacatúa cantante con 3 millones de seguidores, ha hecho vibrar al mundo entero con su última actuación, y su frustrada dueña lo ha posteado en redes sociales.

Kiki canta "September" de Earth, Wind and Fire muy temprano, para disgusto de esta pobre mujer.

Al parecer, para Kiki, ninguna hora era demasiado temprano para bailar el pegadizo estribillo del megaéxito de 1978 mientras estaba encima de una pecera en la habitación de su dueña.

La dueña, privada de sueño, levanta el dedo para ordenar "silencio" al pájaro, que obedece... pero vuelve a hacerlo un segundo después porque, admitámoslo, ¡la canción es demasiado buena para dejarla!

Frustrada por las travesuras de Kiki, su madre humana envió un grito de ayuda en el pie de foto, escribiendo: "Enviar ayuda porfa, ¿dónde está el botón de apagado del loro?"

Con 22 millones de "me gusta" y subiendo, los comentarios no se hicieron esperar: una persona reconoció que el dueño "no lo apagó, solo se quedó dormido"... mientras que otra bromeaba: "¿Quién es el administrador del pájaro? Tengo que ponerme en contacto con ellos para poner a esta estrella en mi próxima playlist🔥".

Kiki lleva un tiempo repartiendo alegría y risas por Internet con un montón de otras interpretaciones, como "If You're Happy and You Know It".

A British woman's pet bird is also an early bird -- and the way it wakes up its owner is with some '70s soul music ... which the internet is absolutely loving on TikTok.

Kiki -- a singing cockatiel who's amassed 3 million followers -- has got the whole world chirping with its latest performance ... which its frustrated human posted online.

Kiki sings Earth, Wind and Fire's "September" bright and early -- to the chagrin of this poor woman.

Apparently for Kiki ... no hour was too early to bop along to the catchy chorus of the 1978 mega-hit while on top of a fish tank in the owner's room.

The sleep-deprived owner then puts up her finger to order "silence" from the bird, who complies ... but is back at it a second later because, let's face it, the song's just too good to give up!

Frustrated with Kiki's antics, the owner sent out a cry for help in the caption, writing -- "Send help plz where's the off button on parrot."

With 22 million likes and counting, the comments poured in -- one person acknowledged the owner "didn't turn it off, just snoozed it" ... while another joked, "Who's the manager of the bird? I need to contact them about putting this star on my next track🔥."

Kiki's been spreading joy and laughter across the internet for a while now with a bunch of other renditions, such as "If You're Happy and You Know It."

Staring down an angry silverback gorilla is not where anyone wants to be -- but a Fort Worth zookeeper did, and the terrifying scene was all captured by zoo patrons.

The video has blown up on TikTok, and it's easy to see why -- Elmo, a 34-year-old male silverback, charged out of a cave-like part of his enclosure heading straight for one of the keepers.

The employee was able to throw a large tin pan, or bucket, as a distraction for Elmo ... as she bolted toward a door. As she holds it open for a few seconds, she's now locked eyes with the massive ape ... and they appear to be in a silent, but tense standoff.

Adding to the drama is the fact a second zookeeper was standing just a few feet away from the gorilla ... hiding behind a tree.

The video was captured by former zoo security officer, Ben White, according to WFAA. He told the outlet, the second zoo worker was trying to play a "fun" game of hide and go seek with Elmo ... to distract him from charging at the other employee.

The ploy worked, as Elmo eventually calmed down and, later, he even held up the tin pan ... seemingly trying to return it to the employees.

White says he actually shot the video several months ago, but it's just now caught fire on social media.

Fort Worth Zoo says the 2 keepers didn't know Elmo was still free in the enclosure when they entered -- but their tactics worked perfectly. There was never any physical contact between Elmo and the keepers ... and no one got hurt.

A dog featured in a movie that's up for an Oscar this year reportedly ruffled feathers at an awards event last month -- where other contenders got pissed off for him being a good boy.

Back in mid-February ... the border collie from 'Anatomy of a Fall' -- whose real name is Messi but who goes by Snoop in the film -- made an appearance at the Oscars luncheon ... where he was a big hit with all the stars, especially with Ryan Gosling, who seemed pretty smitten with the pooch.

Nothing wrong with bringing the dog from the film to make a little cameo for a pre-Oscars powwow right??? WRONG!!!! At least that's how some felt about it behind the scenes.

According to THR, production companies (and presumably studios) that have films up for Academy Awards apparently complained about Messi's presence at the luncheon ... griping that the dog being there and being so popular was giving his film an unfair advantage.

The dog showed up when Oscar voting was still going on -- and per THR, multiple companies with their hat in the ring complained to Academy honchos about it.

Fast-forward to today -- and the newest news is that Messi will be MIA from Sunday's ceremony ... a bummer, of course. Whether that decision has anything to do with the luncheon "scandal" ... jury's out. THR reports the luncheon thing had always been planned to be a one-off for Messi -- but if his being there angered that many people, who knows!

BTW, this dog is super talented -- and some have joked that it might actually be worthy of an Oscar nod itself. If you haven't seen 'Anatomy' yet ... there's a memorable scene with the dog, where it almost overdoses on aspirin ... and it plays out looking scarily real.

As it turns out ... that's because it was, meaning the dog was actually playing dead. A BTS look at how that came to fruition surfaced this week -- and it's pretty fascinating. Smart pup!

Megan Thee Stallion's snake-driven campaign slithered away with a whimper when she met face-to-face with the real deal ... a bottle of alcohol with a dead snake stuffed inside!!!

The rapper is currently turning heads during a trip out in Japan that tested her "Fear Factor" meter -- this after she sampled Habushu, a traditionally super strong liquor native to Okinawa.

Apparently, it's powered by poison ... the local Habu snake is said to ferment inside the container to age as long as possible -- which makes for one hell of a boozy drink.

Welp, Meg dove in without hesitation and asked if the potion would send her to the morgue -- but she didn't chicken out ... taking a sip of the concoction, but not really liking it much.

Meg took a little slurp of the Habushu -- but this time around, she didn't drive the boat too far ... docking and anchoring her experience, saying the drink was too strong for her liking. Can't blame her ... drinking dead snake, even for a buzz, doesn't sound pleasant at all.

It's pretty funny ... Meg topped the Billboard Hot 100 a few weeks back with her single "Hiss" -- which was the follow-up to another reptilian record "Cobra." But, when it comes to the real McCoy ... she isn't into it, it seems.

11:48 AM PT -- Michael Farchi joined "TMZ Live" to take our viewers through the scorpion sting debacle that went viral earlier this morning. He actually now claims The Venetian never comped his room and made him pay for food and various other expenses.

A Las Vegas hotel guest was STUNG in his testicles by a scorpion while asleep in bed – causing him to wake up in incredible pain and utter shock and terror.

On Monday, Michael Farchi sat down with KLAS 8 News Now to discuss his horrifying real-life nightmare at The Venetian Las Vegas on December 26.

Farchi told the reporter he was sleeping in his underwear under the bed sheets in his room when, at around 8 AM, he suddenly felt pain in his groin area.

He described the sensation as "somebody stabbing me in my private area" with a "sharp glass or a knife."

Farchi said he dashed into the bathroom only to discover the orange scorpion attached to his underwear. YIKES!!!

The California man managed to slip out of his briefs and snap photos of the nasty creature dangling from his undies. He then went to the hospital for treatment because he said he was in "a lot of pain."

The next day, Farchi and his family checked out of the hotel, but not before he filed an incident report with staff, detailing what allegedly happened. “Everybody was in shock, nobody believed,” Farchi told KLAS, pointing out management comped his room.

Farchi added that he had no clue how the scorpion got into his bed.

In a statement to KLAS, a Venetian rep said the resort followed all protocols for this type of incident. Farchi's attorney went on to say that guests should always inspect their rooms and the surrounding areas upon checking in.

Farchi says he's now exploring possible legal action against The Venetian.

La policía de Cleveland se vio envuelta en una persecución por carretera este fin de semana muy inusual, ¡ya que los sospechosos en cuestión eran dos sementales!

Échale un vistazo a este video viral del sábado -cortesía del Departamento de Transporte de Ohio- que muestra a dos caballos corriendo contra el tráfico en la Interestatal 90, con los carros pasando peligrosamente cerca de los bellos animales.

Oficiales de la policía de Cleveland fueron vistos haciendo todo lo posible para guiarlos con seguridad lejos de los carros y fuera de la interestatal hacia la hierba más cercana, y finalmente, consiguieron ponerlos bajo control.

En cuanto a donde estos caballos vinieron y cómo podrían haber escapado... la versión oficial es que en realidad eran caballos de la policía que de alguna manera se escaparon de sus establos.

Afortunadamente, nadie resultó herido. Muchos están aplaudiendo el manejo de la policía en una situación tan inusual. No estamos seguros de que estaríamos tan relajados si dos caballos enormes trotaran directamente hacia nosotros, pero bueno, felicitaciones a la policía de Cleveland por mantener la calma y controlar a los suyos.

Cleveland Police were involved in a highway chase this weekend that had serious horsepower -- and we mean that literally ... as the suspects in question were 2 rogue stallions!

Check out this viral video from Saturday -- courtesy of the Ohio Department of Transportation -- which shows two horses running against traffic on Interstate 90, with cars being brought to a brief standstill as the two animals galloped freely in the wind.

Officers for Cleveland PD were seen trying their best to safely guide them away from cars and off the interstate to nearby grass -- and eventually, they got the broncos under control.

As for where these horses came from and how they might have escaped ... the official word is, they were actually with the cops and somehow broke out of their police stables nearby.

Luckily, nobody was harmed in all this -- including the horses themselves. Many are applauding the police's calm handling of the unusual situation. We're not sure we'd be so relaxed if two massive horses trotted directly at us -- but hey, kudos to Cleveland Police for keeping their cool and wrangling their own.

You don't expect to see an alligator strutting its stuff on a residential sidewalk, but that's what happened in South Carolina ... and a poor woman almost ran right into this thing!

Check out this wild footage ... it shows a rogue croc casually chillin' right in front of a person's home in Hilton Head Island Wednesday before the owner innocently strolls along with her dog ... completely oblivious to the scaly surprise waiting for her.

She actually gets within inches of the gator before finally noticing it -- she wasn't even on her phone, BTW, so it's crazy that she didn't see it -- it scares the bejesus out of her.

The woman flinches so hard when she spots the reptile that even her dog gets spooked -- and the scaly beast wasn't too thrilled about the sudden commotion either. It immediately opens its mouth and hisses ... looking ready to go into attack mode!

The woman falls flat on the ground in shock ... but after bouncing back up, she bolts a little distance before looking back to confirm what she's actually seen. Her panicked cries cause such a scene that it draws other neighbors out of their homes ... and you can hear them chatting about the gator off-camera.

A dude is also heard trying to connect the dots ... asking the woman if she's got some kind of creek or body of water on her property that the gator's trying to get to. All this happens as the gator makes a move ... casually sauntering into her greenery like it owns the place.

Turns out, the gator's field trip might not be as surprising as it seems, as sources tell TMZ there's a pond only 5 minutes from this location ... which is probably where it came from.

We're also told that the gator wasn't done with its little tour of the neighborhood. It made a comeback around 5 PM, this time ending up in the neighbor's backyard ... watch the footage.

Luckily, it didn't stick around for too long -- vanishing into thin air once again ... and not harming anyone or anything. Animal control wasn't called during the whole thing, FWIW.

Two humpback whales got caught on-camera engaging in some very adult activities, the first photos of their kind featuring the species ... and it turns out both the whales were dudes!

Here's the deal ... a just-published study in Marine Mammal Science features pics documenting a sexual encounter between a pair of humpback whales off the coast of Hawaii, reportedly the first photographs of two humpbacks ever having penetrative sex. History!

After further examination, the photographers who took the pics -- which the journal says were taken back in 2022 -- found out they'd actually captured two male whales going at it ... checking another first off the list in one fell swoop.

As it turns out, this attempted banging might not have been romantic in nature at all ... 'cause researchers are saying the receiving whale was either sick or injured, and it seems the other whale came along and penetrated him as a show of force -- using his fins to keep him from running off.

The scientists say they're not sure if the top whale was mistakenly trying to knock him up or just establishing dominance. The researchers admit this same-sex session could theoretically go down with two healthy whales, but that just hasn't been documented yet.

BTW ... it's super rare to see a humpback whale penis 'cause it's usually sheathed, so this photo's really got everything going for it. The last attempted humpback whale sex sesh was photographed in '98 ... and that one, too, was male on male -- albeit, dead vs. alive.

In that instance, a male whale tried having sex with a separate dead male whale -- not exactly a match made in heaven. It also doesn't sound like that one was caught on camera.

Anyway, this recent encounter reportedly lasted 30 minutes -- a very respectable time, if we do say so ourselves -- and occurred just about 15 feet below the ocean's surface.

Dos ballenas jorobadas fueron captadas en cámara realizando actividades muy adultas, las primeras fotos de este tipo en las que aparece la especie... ¡Y resulta que ambas ballenas eran machos!

Así es la cosa, un estudio recién publicado en Marine Mammal Science, muestra fotos que documentan un encuentro sexual entre un par de ballenas jorobadas frente a la costa de Hawai, al parecer las primeras fotografías de dos ballenas jorobadas apareándose con penetración... Historico.

Luego de examinar más detenidamente, los fotógrafos que tomaron las fotos -en la revista dice que fueron tomadas en 2022- descubrieron que en realidad habían capturado a dos ballenas macho haciéndolo... consiguiendo así dos hitos de una.

Resulta que este intento de sexo podría no haber sido romántico en absoluto... porque los investigadores dicen que la ballena receptora estaba enferma o herida, y parece que la otra ballena llegó y le penetró como una demostración de fuerza, usando sus aletas para evitar que huyera.

Los científicos dicen que no están seguros de si la ballena superior estaba erróneamente tratando de dejarlo preñado o simplemente estableciendo dominancia. Los investigadores admiten que esta sesión del mismo sexo teóricamente podría ocurrir con dos ballenas sanas, pero eso no ha sido documentado todavía.

Por cierto, es muy raro ver un pene de ballena jorobada porque normalmente está enfundado, así que esta foto lo tiene todo a su favor. El último intento de sexo con una ballena jorobada fue fotografiado en el 98 y ese, también, fue de macho con macho, aunque era uno estaba muerto.

En ese caso, una ballena macho trató de tener relaciones sexuales con otra ballena macho muerta, algo bastante sórdido. Tampoco fue registrado en cámara.

De todos modos, este reciente encuentro duró 30 minutos, un tiempo muy respetable, y se produjo a unos 15 pies bajo la superficie del océano.