2006's Year in Animals!

Some of Gothamist's favorite stories in the city were about the animals of New York City. Here's how animals ruled the Big Apple in 2006:

- A whippet went missing at JFK Airport after appearing at the Westminster Dog Show; a loyal group people have still been looking for Vivi since February.
- A star was born when Fred the cat helped nabbed a bogus vet. He was made a (honorary) detective by Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes, was enlisted to teach school children about animals, and died tragically in the fall.
- A snow leopard from Pakistan arrived in the Bronx
- Police horses went on parade
- Lizards and snakes went on display at the Museum of Natural History
- A manatee visited the Hudson
- People watched bats in Prospect Park
- Cats lived in a Madison Avenue store window for our enjoyment and to raise awareness about cat adoption!
- Hamsters in the hizzy!
- Bronx Zoo elephants are self-aware
- A cat survived the Greenpoint Warehouse fire
- Dogs looked good in costume all year long
- The Audobon Society continued its efforts to keep birds from flying into buildings
- The New York Aquarium out in Brooklyn got some new designs

- Baby gorillas were born at the Bronx Zoo
- Scientists developed hypo allergenic cats
- A turkey tied up traffic on the Triborough Bridge
- Molly the cat stuck in the wall of Greenwich Village's Myers of Keswick store for weeks was recovered in good health
- City folk took to raising chickens
- A coyote was on the loose in Central Park, but died while in transport by animal authorities...the Department of Environmental Conservation says they'll try to do a better job not stressing out animals in the future.
- A cat stabbed in the eye by his disturbed owner found a good home
- Central Park polar bears enjoyed special treats
- The city wondered about horse-drawn carriages after a few incidents

- Project Runway had an episode revolving around designing outfits for dogs and dog owners (pictured, Tim Gunn with dogs in Central Park). Awesome!
- The cat show came into town and was predictably adorable
- And a cat show cat went missing, but was found within Madison Square Garden
- Dog owners and a Queens civic group were pitted against each other over off leash hours for dogs, since the city's health code actually prohibited dogs off leash. But then a judge and the Department of Health OK'd dogs being off-leash.
- Rats ruled the city as usual and even infiltrated movie theaters to nibble on moviegoers' treats

- And David Blaine made like a fish and lived in an aquarium at Lincoln Center for a week.