Cookie the Penguin Getting Tickled: Cute Overload

Cookie the Penguin Getting Tickled: 'Finally Got That on Tape'

In case you haven't already been sent this 300 times, here's Cookie the Penguin getting tickled. Not only is he cute to look at, he's cute when he shrieks in glee at getting tickled. Awww. Ticklish penguin = viral video gold.

Cookie is not a baby penguin; he is full-sized. Cookie is a Little Penguin, also known as a Fairy Penguin. Native to Australia and New Zealand, these tiny penguins are known for their blue and white coloration. Cookie suffers from a condition called bumblefoot, which is inflammation caused by a bacterial infection. That's why Cookie the Penguin is wearing a sock on his right foot. He's getting antibiotic treatment.

Cookie lives at the Cleveland Zoo. The video was shot by Patricia Sund, who writes for Bird Talk Magazine. She got to know Cookie while working a guest stint at Cleveland Zoo.

There's an Australian Broadcasting Company documentary series on Little Penguins called Penguin Island, which shows us just how hardy and tough these tiny sea birds are. Just to get a meal, they must swim the equivalent of three marathons... each way. I was lucky enough to see some of these penguins in their natural habitat. They're unbelievably, impossibly cute; but they smell very funky.

By the way... here's your new ringtone.

Videos

Cookie the Little Penguin at the Cincinnati Zoo

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sourced by Jordan Yerman