There have been a few cases of animals taking selfies so notable that even the media covered them in great detail. A few years ago, park rangers in Colorado discovered hundreds of photos taken by bears on wildlife cameras (which are placed throughout the property simply to observe the animals).
"Of the 580 photos captured, about 400 were bear selfies," Boulder's Open Space and Mountain Parks (OSMP) wrote on X.
The bears showed off from every possible angle, and park rangers were surprised to see the selfies, as "most often, no one — not even City of Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks staff — ever sees them."
There was also a time when a Malaysian man found monkey selfies and videos on his missing phone a day after retrieving it from the jungle behind his house.
The content, including footage of a monkey that appeared to be trying to eat the phone, was widely shared on social media after Zackrydz Rodzi posted it on X.
Rodzi said he initially thought his phone had been stolen while he was sleeping, but calling his number helped him track it down a few steps beyond the back garden, beneath a palm tree.
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Research has even found that animal pictures play an important role in online dating. One study conducted in Austria and Japan suggests that around 16% of profiles displayed at least one animal.
Dogs were the most frequently shown, followed by cats. Among Austrians, women and older adults were more likely to present animals on their profiles, while in Japan, it was usually men and younger users.
And while taking a selfie with your pet (or any other critter) might be challenging, "there's no such thing as too many photos," says Toronto-based animal photographer Jess Bell.
"Animals, unfortunately, aren't with us for very long, so I wouldn't be waiting for the perfect situation — I would be diving in, experimenting."
Just be easy on them, and try not to stress if your pet isn't constantly looking in the right direction. As many of these pictures show, our critters look amazing even when they don't.
"You really only need a fraction of a second to take a photo, so you don't need prolonged 'good behaviour,' whatever that may mean to you," adds Melissa Millett, an animal trainer for film and television based in Sparta, Ontario.
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