People carry their pets before the start of a pet blessing at Greenhills shopping mall in Manila October 3, 2015. Pets were blessed on Saturday in a celebration honouring the patron saint of animals Saint Francis of Assisi. (Photo by Romeo Ranoco/Reuters)

A pet owner holds his guinea pig named Riec as Father Francisco bestows a blessing on the pet rodent during a feast day Mass in honor of Saint Anthony, the patron saint of animals, at the Saint Fernando church, in Mexico City, Saturday, January 17, 2015. Many people in Mexico bring their pets to churches to be blessed by the priest on this day. (Photo by Marco Ugarte/AP Photo)

David Guttenfelder was born in Iowa and graduated from the University of Iowa with a Bachelor of Arts in cultural anthropology. He has worked for the AP since 1994 based in Kenya, the Ivory Coast, India and Japan. He is currently AP’s chief Asia photographer and his feature work has been used prominently in editorial publications throughout the world including Time and National Geographic. Photo: U.S. soldiers from the 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, fire mortars at known enemy firing positions from a base in the Pech River Valley in Afghanistan's Kunar province, Saturday, October 24, 2009. (Photo by David Guttenfelder/AP Photo)

Teams face off in the Cartier Elephant Polo Cup November 18, 2006 in Jaipur, in the Indin state of Rajasthan. Cartier hosted the event which was held to highlight the plight of the dwindling numbers of Asian elephants. Indian and international celebrities flew in the India's “Pink City” for the high society event held by the global watch and jewelry giant. The animal rights organization, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, “PETA” had planned to protest the match, saying that elephants should not be used for sport. Elephants in Jaipur are commonly used for carrying tourists at historic sites. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)

People wearing bear fur costumes dance during the annual bear ritual gathering in Comanesti, Romania, Friday, December 30, 2016. In pre-Christian rural traditions, dancers wearing colored costumes or animal furs, toured from house to house in villages singing and dancing to ward off evil, in the present the tradition has moved to Romania's cities too, where dancers travel to perform the ritual for money. (Photo by Vadim Ghirda/AP Photo)

People stand around a leopard with its head stuck in a vessel in Rajsamand district of Rajasthan state, India, Wednesday, September 30, 2015. The leopard's head got stuck when it attempted to drink water from the pot, according to news reports. Forest officials tranquilized the animal and sawed off the vessel later in the day. (Photo by Kabir Jethi/AP Photo)

People wearing bear furs perform during a festival of New Year ritual dances attended by hundreds in Comanesti, northern Romania, Wednesday, December 30 2015. In pre-Christian rural traditions, dancers wearing colored costumes or animal furs, toured from house to house in villages singing and dancing to ward off evil, in the present the tradition has moved to Romania's cities too, where dancers travel to perform the ritual for money. (Photo by Vadim Ghirda/AP Photo)