Random Utterly Strange Animals That Are Result Of Selective Breeding (14 items)

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  (#5) A Scaleless Chicken Is Convenient For Poultry Industry, Creepy For Everyone Else

  Ever wanted a chicken without all those pesky feathers? You're in luck, because the scaleless chicken exists. Scaleless chickens look like a regular chicken that's already been plucked and boiled, which is actually beneficial to the poultry industry. Featherless birds are easier to climate control and don't require plucking. The downside? They easily catch parasites and are more difficult to breed because of an inability to flap their wings. Their creepy appearance is just a side effect.
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  (#10) Blood Parrot Cichlids Are Slightly Less Terrifying Than They Sound

  What happens when you combine two South American cichlids and mash them together? You create the blood parrot chichlid, a variety of fish bred to have a bright and colorful appearance. Unfortunately, blood parrots are also the subject of some controversy - selective breeding has given them a small vertical mouth that can make it difficult for them to chew. Though they can crush food with their throats, fish lovers have raised concerns that breeding a creature that can't eat effectively is unethical, leading to protests of shops that carry blood parrots.
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  (#14) West Highland White Terrier

  • Animal breed

  Westies - officially called west highland white terriers - are a beloved dog to many. But the history of these creatures is a little less wholesome. The dog comes from a breeding program in the early 20th century Scotland. Edward Donald Malcolm created this breed by crossing Scottish terriers and Polatalloch terriers. 

  Unlike other dogs who are a result of selective breeding, westies actually quite low maintenance dogs - which is why they're a favorite pet for elderly people. They do have some typical medical issues associated with selective breeding: hip dysplasia, cleft palate, and carniomandibular osteopathy, to name a few.
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  (#4) This Bird Is Bred To Look Like The Number Seven

  The gibber italicus canary looks more like a cartoon vulture than its cute yellow origin. Deliberately bred for its bizarre posture, which ideally makes it look like the number seven, this canary breed has sparse feathers and a nervous disposition that makes it ill-suited as a pet for anybody but expert breeders. This canary variant was produced after years of inbreeding to create its strange shape and feathers. While some selective breeding experiments can be cute, this one is more than a little bit creepy. What's even creepier is that its unclear why canary enthusiasts wanted to make this bird in the first place. 
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  (#9) Munchkin Cats Take Cuteness Too Far

  It's tempting to take something cute and make it even cuter, but sometimes that backfires. Munchkin cats are one such example. While their large eyes, long fur, and short, stubby legs make them the epitome of precious, these cats are selective bred for dwarfism, which causes their short legs. It also causes the cats to have spinal malformations, limits how much (and how high) they can jump, and leads to a slew of medical problems.

  Because munchkin cats are a relatively new breed, there hasn't been much research into whether their lack of ability to jump is due to reduced leg size or because it's painful for them, leading to questions about how ethical it is to breed them for cuteness. In 1995, members of the International Cat Association had a huge blowout over the cats, with some saying they are the cats of the future and others saying they're a cruel creation.
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  (#2) The Emoji Python Is Always Smiling

  Why have a normal snake pattern when you could have a snake covered in smiley faces? Justin Kobylka, a snake breeder, spent eight years breeding this snake to have its unique smiley-face pattern. The snake's coloring is normal for an albino ball python, but breeding it to have three complete smiley faces on its back took time and effort. The pattern is a mere cosmetic difference and confers no benefit or harm, other than that all of Kobylka's hard work in breeding the snake means it's worth over $4,000. 

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