Life

13 Animals Who Wish They Were Pirates

Not that you needed another excuse to slap on the ol’ eye patch, tie on a bandana, wave your Jolly Roger and shout “SAIL HO” at innocent passerby, but today is International Talk Like A Pirate Day, and depending on who you talk to (and which pirate dialect you use), it’s not a day to be overlooked.

There are, of course, many ways to celebrate this most random of holidays. For instance, you could find out your pirate name via this handy name generator and demand that your mateys only call you by that for the rest of the afternoon, or else face the plank (mine is Sword Jugglin’ Mae Straw, for those of you curious, but I’ll also respond to “The Elusive Chanteuse”). You could head on over to Krispy Kreme dressed in your best pirate finery and score yourself some sweet, forbidden treasure, a.k.a. free donuts. Or, you could do what I do to celebrate most holidays (and non-holidays, for that matter) — spend the rest of your afternoon looking at pictures of cute animals doing silly things. Because as excited as you may be for International Talk Like A Pirate Day, these 13 adorable scallywags are even more jazzed. Hey, they may not be able to physically talk like pirates, but damn, they sure do look the part.

1. First thing's first: This dog is your captain

So listen up, you scoundrels.

2. This dog just pillaged your heart

He's the reason why pirate-themed holidays exist, TBH.

3. The pirate cat whose side-eye is more fearsome than the dreaded black spot

A true seadog at heart.

4. The pirate with the sweet, sweet puppy dog eyes that basically pierce through your soul

But don't let them fool you. This guy means business on the high seas.

5. The meanest sea monster you ever did see

He's commandeering your heart with cuddles.

6. The swashbuckler who literally could not wait to wear this hat

I mean, duh. Just look at it.

7. The dog who pilfered some glitter

Flashy and fearless.

8. The pirate pug who's ready to get this party started

Now you know why the rum is always gone.

9. The cat who runs a tight ship...

...so don't even try to run a rig on this guy.

10. The dog who never goes anywhere without her fearless crew of spiders

All hands on deck.

11. The dog who doesn't look for treasure...

...because he is the treasure.

12. The dog who always commits to the part

He's just a little wobbly on his sea legs.

13. The cat who doesn't understand why this is a real holiday

...but then again, neither do we. Arghh.

Images: Kristin Shoemaker (3); Adam Jensen; Jackie; ThinkGeek; Andrew Becraft (2); aJ Gazmen; Nicole G; Peter Jackson; Anne Marie; Laurie Pink/Flickr; Pets Adviser; Giphy