Jockstrip: The world as we know it.

Pedicab pair deny stripper categorization

NEW YORK, Nov. 24 (UPI) -- A man and woman in New York who offer people an eyeful as she spins about a stripper pole on the back of his rickshaw say the activity is not stripping.

Landscaper Andrew Katzander said when he takes his pedicab out with pole-dancing teacher Marlo Fisken gyrating on an 8-foot pole on the back of his cycle rickshaw, it is simple exercise for both, the New York Post reported Sunday.

"It's all legal. The cops can't really stop us -- I'm riding my bike and she's exercising," said the 44-year-old, who says the pair has already been stopped once by New York police.

Fisken told the Post her pole actions may be a bit seductive but that doesn't make her a stripper.

"I'm not a stripper. Because you have high heels and you're on a pole, it doesn't mean you're doing anything raunchy," she said. "It's fun, and it's a little bit exhibitionist."

The pair met through a Craigslist posting and are hoping to offer the pole-dancing service as a party gag, the newspaper said.

Converted swimming pools for new housing?

SYDNEY, Nov. 24 (UPI) -- A Sydney architectural firm suggests converting some of the area's 360,000 swimming pools into mother-in-law apartments -- draining them first, of course.

Nobbs Radford Architects' proposal was the runner-up in the Architecture Australia Prize for Unbuilt Work, The Sydney Morning Herald reported. The firm came up with the idea after New South Wales Premier Morris Iemma announced in July that restrictions on "secondary dwellings" on suburban lots were being eased.

Alison Nobbs said converted in-ground pools would allow more housing for Sydney's growing population without dotting the suburbs with large apartment buildings.

"It's just making a suburban experience more accessible," she said. "It's a small, one-bedroom apartment. Rather than being stuck in an apartment building, I guess it allows people access to a suburban experience as well, with a garden and separate dwelling experience."

Manfred Wiesemes, president of the Swimming Pool and Spa Association of New South Wales, said he believes the plan is unworkable. He said empty pools tend to float when heavy rain saturates the soil around them and the deep and shallow ends of the pool would need an expensive fix.

Mexican jaguar gets dental work in Phoenix

PHOENIX, Nov. 24 (UPI) -- A jaguar from Mexico recently had dental work done at the zoo in Phoenix by a father-son team of dentists.

Veterinary dentist Chris Visser and his son Louis, a dentist who normally works on humans, performed four root canals and three extractions on the big cat, The Arizona Republic reported.

The newspaper said an armed man stood watch, just in case the animal unexpectedly came out of anesthesia, as a total of six doctors worked on the cat's mouth.

The jaguar reportedly damaged its teeth trying to gnaw its way out of a metal cage after being trapped by a rancher. The big cat, estimated to be 3 or 4 years old, broke all four of its canine teeth and ground down three incisors trying to escape.

"The tooth damage resulted in infection that could kill the animal," said Dr. Benjamin Alcantar of the Centro Ecologico de Sonora, the zoo in Hermosillo, Mexico, that housed the cat after officials confiscated it from the rancher.

Internet star puppies moving on

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 24 (UPI) -- Six Shiba Inu puppies belonging to a San Francisco couple are leaving the Web after winning the hearts of millions of Internet surfers.

About 4 million people are believed to have watched the pups, the New York Post reported. John Ham, president of Ustream, the streaming service used by the Shiba Inus' owners, said one Texas hospital used the video to cheer up depressed patients.

Females Autumn, Amaya, Aymui and their brothers Aki, Akoni and Ando have all been adopted. Ham said each adoptive family is getting a Webcam along with the dog so they can continue the puppycam if they wish.

For those who need their fix of Shiba Inu pups, a new stream started Friday, Ham said. He believes the new puppies are in Japan.