Animal Planet is an American basic cable and satellite television channel owned by Discovery Inc. Originally focused on more educationally-based television shows, the network has featured more reality programming since 2008. It is available throughout the United States, as well as in over 70 countries around the world. Country-specific versions of the channel have been created in Canada, India, Japan, Taiwan, and other countries.
History with the Macy's Parade
Starting in 1999, Animal Planet was represented by a float in the Macy's Parade titled "Amazing Creatures of the Wild". The float featured a 30-foot long, jaw-snapping alligator, holding an inflatable earth up with his tail. The float also showcases many exotic animals such as a trumpeting elephant, a giant panda, an ostrich, and a cat, among others. The float would commonly house the stars of the many Animal Planet programs. This float made its final appearance in 2004.
The following year, in 2005, Animal Planet debuted a much larger float, this time under the name "Animal Wonders". At the center of the float, a large treehouse housed the many celebrities and stars of Animal Planet's many television programs. A multitude of different animals surrounded and decorated the float, including a humpback whale majestically leaping out of the water, a family of penguins, various chimpanzees hanging from trees, an over-sized coral snake, parrots, and a giant panda eating bamboo. The float would make three consecutive appearances, before retiring after the 2007 Parade. This float still exists as of 2017 in the float warehouse.