In Mexico, there are many Aztec words still in common usage.  For example, the usual Spanish word for "turkey" is el pavo, but in Mexico it's often el guajolote.

The official word for a male goat, cabrón, has taken on vulgar, sexual overtones that are tricky for foreigners to handle properly.  So instead use the polite term el macho cabrío or la cabra macho.

La perra has some of the rude connotations that it has in English, but it isn't as strong.  A Spanish-speaker who wants to be really rude will usually choose the word puta (whore) over perra (bitch).  Thus, "son of a bitch" becomes in Spanish hijo de puta.  As in the case of cabrón, English speakers are strongly urged not to attempt jokes with these words.

When a woman wants to put down a man, she can make references to el buey (the ox), implying castration or impotence.  Any reference to horns implies that the man is a cuckold.   English-speaking women are advised to feign (a) ignorance of the terms, and (b) cold disinterest when the innuendos start to fly.

Strong political figures often receive animal nicknames.  For example, the Nicaraguan dictator Somoza was called "El Tiburón" (The Shark), an unflattering but apt description.

As in English, the fox is considered sly.  That's considered a positive trait for men, a negative one for women.

The language of the Incas, Quechua, is still widely spoken, and it has given us several animal names such as a la llama and el guanaco.  The lowly guinea pig is referred to in Spanish as el conejillo de Indias, but its Quechua name, cuy, is more common in the Andes,where it is grown for food.  Tasty food. Yum!!!

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