10 Weird Photos of People Riding Animals

 

1A Bear

Here's a picture of a man riding his bear down the street in Xingjiang, China. Thankfully the bear is wearing a harness.
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2A Giraffe

Redditor Kidballa uploaded this picture of his aunt riding a giraffe back in 1972.
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3Alligators

Believe it or not, before Disneyland existed, there was a very unusual place called the California Alligator Farm. For just 25 cents, you could visit with, ride, and feed some live alligators.
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4An Ostrich

Cawston Ostrich Farm, located in Pasadena, California, was opened in 1886 by Edwin Cawston. It was America's first ostrich farm and was located in the Arroyo Seco Valley just three miles (5 km) north of downtown LA where it occupied nine acres. It was a premier tourist attraction for many years. Guests were able to ride ostriches, be taken for ostrich-drawn carriage rides and buy ostrich-feathered hats, boas, capes and fans at the gift shop store was connected to the factory.
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5A lion

Gay's Lion Farm was in El Monte, California, which is about 13 miles outside of LA. The farm housed the MGM lion and several animals that were used in Tarzan movies. The site was open to tourists—you can see an amazing collection of the Farm's postcards here.
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6Hippopotamus

A zookeeper and a young visitor with a hippopotamus at the St. Louis Zoo in the early 20th century.
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7A Reindeer

The Dukha people of Mongolia are truly fascinating. The nomadic tribe has lived in the region for centuries and have developed a relationship with wild animals that is utterly amazing. Photographer Hamid Sardar-Afkhami recently documented this relationship in a series of stunning photographs.
Through their own brand of animal husbandry, the Dukha have learned to use reindeer as a means of transportation over the treacherous terrain they call home.
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8A Rhinoceros

William (Bill) D. Snyder came to Africa as part of the Gatti Expedition to the Mountains of the Moon, 1947-1948. Snyder left the team in March 1948 and found another job as a sound technician with Arch Oboler.
Snyder and Oboler visited the compound of Carr-Hartley in Rumuruti, Kenya in the summer of 1948. Afterward, Hartley gave some pictures to Snyder.
Hartley went to Sudan to capture specimens of the white rhino in that country, which were later delivered to Antwerp and Hanover zoos. It is likely that this occurred in 1949, and the photos must date from around that time.
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9A Snake

You might think rice farmer Khuorn Sam Ol and his wife wouldn't be keen on having their child play with a 16-foot-long, 220-pound snake.
However, they are unflustered by their 7-year-old son, Uorn Sambath, who regularly sleeps in the massive coil of the female python, rides the reptile, kisses it and even pats it down with baby powder.
The boy and his snake have become a tourist attraction and a source of wonder to local sin Setbo, about 12 miles south of Phnom Penh.
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10A Turtle

A young child riding a giant tortoise tempts him with food.
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