Hello and welcome to Animal Wonders.

I'm Jessi and I get to hang out with all kinds of animals everyday. And while I have degrees and years of experience that allow me to do this, sometimes I just wish everyone could experience what I get to.

So I had an idea where I could give you an extremely close up and intimate experience with some of the unusual animals I work with. Sure I can show them to you and tell you how they feel, but what if you could experience who they are and how they feel in a totally different way? Like really, really close.

This episode is going to be different than our usual presentation style because... [RUBS PORCUPINE QUILLS AGAINST EACH OTHER] this is a totally different way of sharing the animals. We're going to venture into the world of ASMR. [CHEERY INTRO MUSIC]. For those of you who don't know,.

ASMR stands for Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response, and it's a genre on YouTube that's focused on giving the viewer a sense of shivers down their spine or tingles on their head and back of neck. So, the rest of this episode is going to be all about getting to know the animals from how they sound and to add to your experience, I will be whispering as well. This next part is the ASMR portion of the video, so I'd recommend putting on headphones for the full experience. [HARP MUSIC] [RUBS PORCUPINE QUILLS AGAINST EACH OTHER].

Quills, what an amazing adaptation for defense. [QUILLS CLICK TOGETHER]. These quills came from an African crested porcupine, but porcupines aren't the only animal using quills for protection. [TICKLES SNIFFLES]. Today I'm going to feature….

Tickles the hedgehog. [TICKLES SNIFFS AND HISSES] When disturbed, hedgehogs flex their back muscles and criss cross their quills, making an impenetrable barrier. [TICKLES SNIFFS]. They then hiss in warning and lurch forward, just to push their point. Hedgehog quills are made of hard keratin on the outside with a spongy flexible inside. [TICKLES SNIFFS AGAINST MIC].

While the sharp tip is not to be messed with, the spine's design actually makes them extremely helpful in absorbing the impact when an adventuring hedgehog slips and falls head first off a log. [TICKLES SNIFFS]. They make up for their clumsiness with their incredible sense of smell, which leads them to their food, [TICKLES HISSES] hidden away amongst fallen leaves and grasses. [BRUSHING AGAINST ARMOR]. My next feature today... [GENTLE TAPPING ON ARMOR] is Gaia, the three-banded armadillo. [BRUSHING AGAINST ARMOR].

Armadillos have a hard external body covering. It's made of bone and keratin, and it's used to protect them from predators. [RUBS HAIR ON MIC]. Small patches of wiry hair make it known that although they have scale-like armor, they are true mammals. [BRUSHING AGAINST ARMOR].

Armadillos are undeniably [BRUSHING AGAINST ARMOR] unique and fascinating animals, [ROOK THE RAVEN CAWING] [BRUSHING AGAINST ARMOR] along with their closest relatives - sloths and anteaters. [SCRATCHES ARMOR WITH FINGERNAIL AND GENTLY TAPS] [BRUSHING AGAINST SCALES]. Loki the Chinese water dragon [BRUSHING AGAINST SCALES] is also quite impressive. [BRUSHING AGAINST SCALES]. These interesting scales are hard and smooth and help him safely navigate the branches of tall trees. [BRUSHING AGAINST SCALES] [ROOK THE RAVEN CAWING] [TOUCHES BACK SPIKES WITH QUILLS].

The long back spikes help him stay camouflaged into the foliage while also impressing those around him. [STROKES SPIKES AND SCALES WITH TOOTHBRUSH]. The scales on his belly are quite soft and flexible. [BRUSHES SPIKES AND SCALES AS ROOK THE RAVEN CAWS]. The scales become firmer [BRUSHES SCALES] the farther down you go. [RUBS SELF ADHESIVE WRAP AGAINST HARD SCALES AS ROOK THE RAVEN CAWS].

Their tail is a climbing aid and is rough to the touch when moving upward. [RUBS SELF ADHESIVE WRAP AGAINST HARD SCALES AS ROOK THE RAVEN CAWS]. It gets quite hard at the end of their tail... [ROOK THE RAVEN CAWS] which they use to whip anything that bothers them. [BRUSHES AGAINST SCALES]. This dragon [BRUSHES AGAINST SCALES] is living [BRUSHES AGAINST SCALES] his best life! [BRUSHES AGAINST SCALES] [RUBS PORCUPINE QUILLS TOGETHER] [TAPS PORCUPINE QUILLS AGAINST EACH OTHER].

I hope you enjoyed this up close experience with Tickles the hedgehog, Gaia the armadillo, and Loki the water dragon. [HARP MUSIC]. Each of these animals you saw today came to Animal Wonders because they were displaced pets or illegally owned. I touched them with a baby toothbrush and a soft self adhesive wrap to enhance the sounds of the texture of their body coverings.

If you like this video and you'd like to see and hear more animals featured in this way, let me know in the comments. And be sure to subscribe for more animal adventures. I'm also proud to announce that we've been working with an online reading app called Rivet, and we've made some of our videos into storybooks!

I really enjoy reading, and I think it's important to encourage young people to read so they can experience the joy of books as they grow. Our e-books are a unique feature on the app, so make sure you check out Rivet and search for our channel name and read our books! Rivet is available for download in the play store for Apple and Android phones and tablets,.

Chromebooks, and Kindle Fire. This isn't a sponsorship and we aren't getting revenue from the books. It's a free app with free books, and it's just a great place for kids to access safe and fun content online.

There's even features that allow kids to tap on tricky words for help, and families can track reading practice which helps them meet daily reading recommendations. I've put the link below, and I hope you enjoy them! Thanks!