As a person that has a deep, passionate, almost creepy obsession with small animals, I am overjoyed when I discover new animals to curb my enthusiasm. My childhood favorite remains the pig, as I personally identify very closely with them. Not only are they content with their lives as they are, for the most part, they are one of the smartest mammals on the planet, as well. Not that I am trying to glorify myself among a sea of intelligent people. I just like their little curly tails and squealing. My girlfriend, on the other hand, just thinks that I am weird for liking pigs so much. She laughs at me every time she sees me on Pinterest looking at pictures of them, chuckles, and just rolls her eyes.

All things considered, when it comes to her, there is no better, cuter animal than the sleepy sloth, and I must admit, they are absolutely adorable. There is nothing that can brighten her day up than a couple of baby sloth pictures. I have begun seeking them out earnestly on Pinterest, mainly for my own enjoyment. The way that they yawn and sleep all day fill me with such delight.

Named for its slow and lazy demeanor, the sloth is a member of the anteater family. The are two distinct sloth families, the two-toed and the three-toed. While many sloth species are extinct (which fills us both with immense sadness), those that still populate the Earth do so peacefully in the canopies of the jungles that dominate Central and South America.

In order to properly explain how adorable these creatures really are, allow us to list our top 5 reasons for caring so very much about these lethargic tree-unicorns.

1. Those eyes

2. The way they yawn

3. Their squeak

4. Sid the Sloth from "Ice Age"

5. Flash from "Zootopia"

Alas, the gif didn't actually come up, but here is a link to it on another site :) It is hands-down my girlfriend's favorite scene from any recent animated film.

The last two reasons are merely because we both share a deep love for animation and movies, so for there to be such iconic and lovable sloth characters in some of our favorite movies is just a testament to our obsession over these wonderfully slow jungle squirrels. If the list we provided hasn't convinced you that sloths are the best animals on the planet, then you just have to open your eyes.