This is Narwhal. He was born with an extra tail on his forehead

November 13, 2019 9:06 AM

Narwhal is a pupper with a small tail growing from his forehead. He's in fine health and humor, but no the tail does not wag.
posted by sjswitzer (21 comments total)

I'm astonished Johnny Wallflower did not pick this up first
posted by sjswitzer at 9:08 AM on November 13, 2019 [1 favorite]

Sooooo CUUUTTTE!! But also - END OF DAYS!!!
posted by helmutdog at 9:23 AM on November 13, 2019 [3 favorites]

the cetacean we needed
posted by scruss at 9:34 AM on November 13, 2019

Cute doggo, but also, that is fascinating. How did that happen? Is it actually a tail or some other kind of protruding tissue growth? Is it bony? I need to see this pupper's adorable X-ray and MRI scans.
posted by biogeo at 9:46 AM on November 13, 2019 [6 favorites]

The rescue posted about Narwhal's vet visit on Facebook, including a head X-ray. There's no bone in the bonus tail.
posted by skymt at 10:11 AM on November 13, 2019 [4 favorites]

I'm guessing that he absorbed a twin in utero.

Who's a good boy who ate his own twin... You are!
posted by Laura Palmer's Cold Dead Kiss at 10:12 AM on November 13, 2019 [35 favorites]

A Tale of Two Tails
posted by xingcat at 10:24 AM on November 13, 2019 [1 favorite]

> I'm guessing that he absorbed a twin in utero.

His name should be Ouroboros then, no?
posted by ardgedee at 10:51 AM on November 13, 2019 [7 favorites]

More like Adoraboros
posted by invitapriore at 11:22 AM on November 13, 2019 [56 favorites]

I know that doesn't rhyme
posted by invitapriore at 11:23 AM on November 13, 2019 [1 favorite]

I've been in love with this dog since I found out about him last night. Some folks online suggest they should remove it so he won't get adopted out to someone who wants to make him the next Grumpy Cat or something, but I am against tail docking for anything aside from health reasons.
posted by Countess Elena at 11:24 AM on November 13, 2019 [6 favorites]

My IMMEDIATE question was whether he could wag it, so I'm glad they got that out of the way right away.
posted by dlugoczaj at 12:00 PM on November 13, 2019 [4 favorites]

Better than a nose on your butt I guess.
posted by EndsOfInvention at 12:12 PM on November 13, 2019 [8 favorites]

That puppy is adorable but the extra tail is creepy. Maybe if someone puts a bow on it? Nah, still creepy. Not the pup's fault in any way. Just, it makes me think of the movie Alien. It's not the puppy's fault that my brain works like that, but it's not my fault either.
posted by Bella Donna at 1:06 PM on November 13, 2019 [5 favorites]

He is so cute and I love him and I might have squealed with delight when I clicked on that picture of him.
posted by ilovewinter at 1:07 PM on November 13, 2019 [2 favorites]

This picture (there's more than one in the link but you'll know it when you see it) was the first place my mind went when I saw this puppy, btw. Except it was actually the TV moving-picture variety, and the tail was in fact wagging.
posted by dlugoczaj at 2:10 PM on November 13, 2019

Better than a nose on your butt I guess.

I'm not sure actual dogs would agree to this.
posted by Bee'sWing at 2:18 PM on November 13, 2019 [9 favorites]

You can also put me down for "Visceral Dislike" though I can't articulate why exactly. I guess this is what tryptophobia must be like.
posted by Mr.Encyclopedia at 6:58 PM on November 13, 2019

Next Halloween they should dye it black and dress him up like Superdog.
posted by Rhaomi at 12:24 AM on November 14, 2019

Speaking of visceral dislike, the WaPo article about Narwhal uses the phrase "a puppy dissolves in the womb" in describing fetal absorption and I'd like a hard moratorium on that.
posted by Flannery Culp at 3:06 PM on November 14, 2019 [1 favorite]

Here’s a story about Narwhal’s deer friend.
posted by oulipian at 11:54 AM on November 15, 2019