Before you spend another day complaining about your raging heartburn or frequent bathroom breaks, check out how other animals make it through pregnancy and child rearing.

You hear about women being months along before knowing they’re pregnant. This could never happen to a pigeon is only pregnant for 10-18 days!

Spousal aggression? Check! In many spider species, the female kills the male shortly after he deposits his sperm.

Our ancestral equivalent to the stay at home dad-the seahorse. The male receives eggs into his pouch from the female. She thins out while he gets chubby. The mom-to-be visits the gestating male every morning for a courtship dance. His contractions start at night and he’ll give birth before morning when he is ready for the next egg deposit.

Forget health education, domesticated dogs can reach sexual maturity as young as 6 months of age!

Rabbit’s ovulation is induced by the sex act itself. Therefore, they can produce many litters each year. Unfortunately they are often inattentive mothers, nursing only minutes each day and weaning after a month.

Whales are delivered tail first and stick by their young for 7-10 years after birth.

The one animal who truly deserves an award-the elephant who is pregnant for 22 months and births calves who weigh an average of 250 pounds. No wonder they say an elephant never forgets.

Tags: animals | baby | learning

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