“Sloths have VERY WEAK hind legs. On the ground, they use their sharp CLAWS and STRONG front legs to DRAG themselves forward.”

National Geographic Kids, 5,000 Awesome Facts, fact #16 on sloths

“From the moment they are born sloths are able to lift their entire body weight upwards with just one arm. Not only that, but sloths have 30% less muscle mass than similar sized mammals and are over three times stronger than the average human.” Sloths usually grow between 21-29 feet, and anywhere from 9 to 17 lbs.

In fact, sloths have four appendages on their body where the two toed are equal in length, and the three toed have arms that are twice as long as their legs. All sloths have 3 toes (claws) on the rear appendages. Only the two – toed sloth have only 2 toes on the front.

The front arms are extremely strong, enabling them to hold onto branches all day and all night and into even death. The back legs are incredibly weak, so much so that they can not stand on all fours. Instead they have to plug along by way of their front arms and “claws” if crossing a street, moving to water, or travelling between trees.

They can however, protect themselves with their 3-4 inches long “claws”, or fingers, if provoked, or use their large canines.