![cute sloth cute sloth](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/41/aa/37/41aa37fba17dd262335f6c4ad7060b11.jpg)
![cute sloth cute sloth](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/bd/2c/e1/bd2ce189f309abdec56a82482cce345b.jpg)
The first act of defense would be to hiss, grunt, and swipe at you with their claws. When a sloth feels vulnerable or stressed, they can move very quickly, whether that is to climb away or counterattack by swiping with their claws and biting, if they get the chance. Questioning your assumption about their cute and cuddliness yet?Īlongside these defense measures, they are also not nearly as sluggish as their reputation would lead you to believe. These claws are strong and sharp, which they use for a quick swipe that can leave visible and painful damage, not to mention that if they were to get your hand in the hold of their hook, they can quickly pull the hand into their mouth. This means that if you were to be so unfortunate as to get bitten, it is extremely probable for the wound to become infected.Īlongside these dangerous teeth, Two-Fingered sloths also have very claw-like fingers that are very sharp and utilized in defense.
![cute sloth cute sloth](https://www.thelondoneconomic.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/SWNS_SLOTH_BABY_02.jpg)
Not only are these teeth extremely sharp, but a Hoffman’s sloth’s mouth also has been known to contain more bacteria than that of a dog’s mouth. Two-Fingered sloths, scientifically known as Hoffman’s Two-Toed Sloth (Choloepus hoffmanni), actually have four large pseudo canines (premolars) that they ensure are constantly sharp, by grinding them against each other, to be useful in defense. Although these animals are extremely cute, no one can deny that they are most definitely not as slow and gentle as they may seem. This is one of the most prevalent misconceptions concerning the reputation of sloths. How many times have you seen an image of a sloth or a sloth portrayed in media and thought about how cute and cuddly the animal looks? Maybe you even felt a desire to find one and give it a good snuggle since they are a sloth, which is synonymous with lazy, cute, and cuddly, how much damage could they do?