Source: @mikeneko5569

Tiny Japanese Lizards Soaking in A Paper Cup Bath Is The Cutest Thing You’ll See This Week [Video]

Soaking in hot springs or onsen 温泉 is one of the joys of Japan and a must-try experience when you visit the country. As you already may know, humans aren't the only ones who enjoy a good soak. Perhaps most famously, the snow monkeys in Nagano Prefecture's Jigokudani can't get enough of the onsen, especially in winter, but we've also seen capybaras enjoying a good soak.

But have you ever seen lizards taking a bath?

Twitter user Mikeneko-san (@mikeneko5569) is the proud owner of eight Japanese grass lizards (Takydromus tachydromoides), three adults and five juveniles.

Mikeneko-san recently posted a video of two females soaking in a paper cup, and seeming to enjoy every minute of it:

If you'd like to see the video in a larger format, click on the direct link here.

Looking for all the world like two humans soaking in an onsen, the video was so popular that the tweet now has over 37,000 likes and 11,000 retweets at the time of writing.

If you think these lizards are cute, most Japanese people would agree with you. In fact, according to one theory, their Japanese name kanahebi, usually written カナヘビ, comes from the kanji 愛蛇, meaning "lovable snake" because of its lovable appearance.

(@mikeneko5569)

The video is made even cuter by the fact that the two lizards have what appear to be towels on their heads. In fact, Mikeneko-san made these props out of cotton. Putting a towel on your head is something Japanese people often do when they go to onsen.

IYO | © PIXTA

Some of the people who commented on it were fellow lizard owners who wondered how she was able to get her lizards to behave so calmly as they soaked in a tiny bath. Mikeneko-san explained that one of the females was pregnant and the other was suffering from egg binding (a condition which can develop in oviparous animals in which there is difficulty laying eggs), which is perhaps why they enjoyed the warm water. The one with egg binding apparently recovered later.

In case you were wondering, this is what happens when bathtime is over:

If you'd like to see more cute pictures of her Japanese grass lizards, you can visit her blog here or follow her Twitter account.

By - Ben K.

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