I find out that non-human primates laugh and make jokes. Koko, a gorilla in Woodside, California is able to sign language 1000 words and she has made jokes. She once tied her trainer's shoelaces together and signed "chase".
If chimpanzees giggle as they play, are there other animals with a sense of humour? It was found that rats chirp when they chase each other around and engage in play fighting. The New Scientist article says that when people found out they could make their pet rats laugh by poking their bellies, as in tickling, "People the world over were opening up their rat cages and engaging Pinky and Mr Pickles in full-scale tickle wars."
What about the New York Times article headline "Dogs may laugh, but only cats get the joke." Of course, the dog laugh: I learn that dogs have a peculiar sound they make when they are feeling playful. This is usually termed as ‘the laugh’ and has contributed to speculation regarding the question: ‘do dogs have a sense of humour?’
Darwin thought that dogs have a sense of humour. His example was the dog taking a stick or object and running off a few steps, play bowing, waiting for the master to retrieve the stick, then snatching the stick and running around, making a game as if it were a practical joke. Darwin believed that the differences in intelligence between humans and animals are ones of degree, not kind.
Here's my cosmic version of the Temple of Love at Whistling Gardens.
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