Animal X

Oscar is a ten year old Labrador-Retriever, but he's no ordinary family pet. He has hypnotised thousands of people across Britain.

Hugh Lennon and his dog have toured venues around the country confounding the sceptics and sending volunteers into a deep sleep. Just one look into the deep brown pool's of Oscar's eyes and participants go under. Hugh Lennon puts Oscar's talent down to his special stare.

Even when he was a puppy Lennon noticed Oscar sitting and staring at him while the other dogs in the litter ran around. Dogs are well known for their special ability to sense things about people and put them at ease. They are often used in hospitals to lift the spirits of the sick and calm the nervous.

Oscar uses his huge eyes to relax people as they are hypnotised. But this sort of behaviour isn't restricted to the stage. Animals in the wild are known to hypnotise other creatures with a threatening stare. Lions make their prey feel vulnerable with a hypnotic stare. The mongoose is known to be able to hypnotise snakes.

Never seen alive by the human eye in its natural environs, the giant squid is a scientific phenomenon of monstrous proportions.

Giant squids are carnivorous and can grow to a massive 20 metres in length. With eyes the size of hubcaps, beak-like mouths which can cut through steel and ten arms teeming with tentacles they were the terror of seafarers.

Eye witness accounts dating back to the 1600s tell of giant squids battle with adult sperm whales and even a Norwegian Navy tanker Tango with the tales of titanic tentacles.

For Australians in the 1930s, Phar Lap was a national hero. Born in New Zealand in 1926, Phar Lap won 37 of the 51 races in which he started earning him the title of 'The Greatest Racehorse ever'.

In 1930, just two days before the Melbourne Cup, an attempt was made on Phar Lap's life but Tommy Woodcock shielded Phar Lap who went on to win the race.

Phar Lap died in California in 1932. Autopsy reports stated that Phar Lap died of a 'colicky condition' due to eating wet grass.

However, allegations of foul play were made against owner Tommy Woodcock and incompetence against vet Tony Nielson. Animal X explores the mystery and controversy which surrounds the death of 'The Greatest Racehorse ever'.

A classic American horror story and urban legend. For more than four decades a creature with the human body and legs like a goat has reportedly haunted the American state of Maryland.

Reports began to emerge in 1957. A large hairy manlike creature was seen by a couple in their driveway as they arrived home late one night.

A posse was formed to hunt for the animal, but nothing was ever found.

The creature, which allegedly has a passion for killing dogs, became known as the Goatman, taking a prominent place in the area's folklore. Reports of the Goatman are still being made and Animal X went to uncover the mystery of the half-man, half-goat beast.

From the West Coast of Ireland to the West Coast of Australia people are taking to the waters to swim with dolphins as a means of therapy.

From children with autism to adults with schizophrenia and MS, all seem to feel an overwhelming sense of calm and well-being after having swum with dolphins.

But what's the reason behind this phenomena. Why do dolphins seem to want to be with the sick and disabled? Animal X takes a closer look.

From Egypt comes a tale of a mysterious beast, reported to have injured dozens of people in ferocious night-time attacks.

It's name, the Salaawa, or female ghoul. Animal X went to meet the victims of this bizarre stalker and to see first-hand the horrific injuries they've sustained.

Witness accounts vary, but most say the animal looks like a dog or wolf. Some claim it has supernatural powers the ability to change shape and jump high in the air. Following 23 attacks in just two weeks in Quattamiya, police set up patrols in the district and ordered residents to stay indoors.

The animal responsible was eventually killed, but only after savaging an entire family. They claim it was invincible and when they threw it on a fire, it's body would not burn.

It has all the makings of a bad sci-fi movie, but this is no far-fetched horror film. This is for real.

From Latin America to Texas, Arizona and Southern California, people are taking cover from THE SWARM! -- Killer Bees that so far have been blamed for the deaths of more than 700 people and countless animals.

And not only are they real - they're unstoppable. Animal X travelled to Tuscon, Arizona - just one of the many cities caught in the grip of this bizarre phenomenon, the result of a biological disaster, a scientific experiment gone wrong. We went in search of residents whose lives have been shattered by these flying freaks of nature, officially known as Africanized Honey Bees.

Many people believe we have been visited by alien beings from other planets ... so is it possible that they sometimes travel with their inter-galactic pets?

Animal X investigates strange tales from Australia which suggest that earth is now home to alien animals which have been brought here from outer space.

But why would a flying saucer carry a menagerie ... and just what did the aliens leave behind?

For centuries, Zimbabwe's Lion Cult has persisted in the belief that at times, special animals are possessed by the spirits of important ancestors.

Taking the physical form of lions, these ancestral spirits roam the countryside interceding where necessary in the affairs of men.

Animal X investigates the Lion Cult, telling the documented story of one such encounter with a Spirit Lion.

It's the world's biggest reptile, capable of eating a whole deer and even water buffalo. A species that's survived for some ten million years, the Komodo Dragon is without a doubt one of the most fascinating creatures on earth.

Animal X travelled to its homeland, Komodo Island to unravel the mystery and myth behind this enormous predatory lizard which has even been blamed for killing people including a Baron from Switzerland.