Animals on the railway

[whole diary]

[grahame]

Seen at Eastleigh / thanks to Mrs Lee for permission to use her picture:

You may take up to two dogs or other small domestic animals free of charge with you unless a Train Company has set out any special conditions relating to their own train services. In such cases these conditions will be made available when buying your Ticket in advance, and will be shown on the Train Company’s website.

Animals other than dogs must be conveyed in a fully enclosed basket or pet carrier designed for this purpose with dimensions not exceeding 85 x 60 x 60 cm. Baskets and pet carriers must be large enough to allow the animal to stand and lie down in comfort. Animals which are too large for a basket or pet carrier with dimensions 85 x 60 x 60 cm may not be conveyed by train.

Livestock and non-domestic animals cannot be carried in any circumstances.

So ... is a unicorn "domestic" and where's the pet carrier?

[SandTEngineer]

Well done Grahame (and Mrs.Lee) that really has cheered me up for the weekend......

[Bmblbzzz]

So ... is a unicorn "domestic" and where's the pet carrier?

The unicorn, Equus monoceras, is primarily a wild animal whose natural range is not precisely known. While domesticated examples have been recorded, it fares very badly in captivity and attempts to farm it for its highly valued droppings, which are rainbow coloured and aromatic, have all failed. But what we have here is not actually a unicorn; a closer look will reveal the human torso joined to unicorn body. This is in fact an extremely rare example of a live centaur. The taxonomy of the centaur has yet to be determined; while some authorities consider it a hybrid (in this case Equus monoceras x Homo sapiens), others (primarily Tolkien et al) insist it is a distinct species. Whether hybrid or not, it needs a ticket!