Friday, November 30, 2007

Crocodile Has Brief Glimpse of Freedom




Fugitive crocodile recaptured

Thu Nov 29, 2007 9:40am EST

DONETSK, Ukraine (Reuters) - Officials in Ukraine recaptured a crocodile on Wednesday which had escaped from a travelling circus six months previously and repeatedly eluded search teams.

The reptile was found basking in a pool at a thermal power station in the east of the country, where the water was warmer than the nearby sea.

"We caught the crocodile alive today," Oleksander Soldatov, a spokesman for the Emergencies Ministry said by telephone. "We are now contacting the owner so that he can come and fetch it."

The crocodile escaped from the circus in late May and was spotted several times lurking around industrial sites near the city of Mariupol, on the coast of the Sea of Azov.

© Reuters2007All rights reserved

Cheetah Has Short Glimpse of Freedom




Young cheetah escapes and is returned

By Diane Toroian Keaggy
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
11/21/2007

ST. LOUIS — St. Louis Zoo officials are still unsure how a year old cheetah escaped from her yard in the River's Edge on Monday morning.

The Zoo's 10 cheetahs are off display while keepers study their enclosure and add more fencing, said Jack Grisham, Zoo vice president of animal collections. He expects the cheetahs to return to their yard this weekend.

"We have no idea how she got out," said Grisham. "We're looking at everything."

Grisham said Zuri, a 40-pound cheetah, is doing fine after her brief brush with freedom. She escaped from her yard about 10:40 a.m. Monday and was shot with a tranquilizer dart a half-hour later. She was about 30 feet from her exhibit. Visitors were evacuated from the River's Edge and herded into nearby buildings.

"She was probably just as nervous to be separated from her siblings," said Grisham. "She was looking for a way back into her exhibit."

Zuri is the third cheetah to escape from her yard this decade. In 2003, 4-year-old Halala scaled a wall as she fled a frisky male cheetah. And in 2000, 8-year-old Akili cleared a moat to avoid her suitor.

After those escapes, the Zoo deepened the exhibit's moat and strung electrified wires, which deliver a mild shock. Grisham said cheetahs do not require wire canopies and wide moats like lions, tigers and other dangerous cats.

Grisham is unsure what motivated Zuri, but said, "Cheetahs are very inquisitive."

Other than the penguin who popped over the Plexiglas in during the opening months of Penguin & Puffin coast, the Zoo has had no other escapes, Grisham said.

Grisham said keepers run emergency drills three for times a year. "It pays off in situations like this."

dkeaggy@post-dispatch.com | 314-340-8343
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Wednesday, November 28, 2007

Lazy Townspeople Seek to Exhile Early-Rising Rooster



Cock crows too early for town

Wed Nov 28, 2007 10:22am EST

ROME (Reuters) - A rooster crowing at the break of dawn has earned his owner a 200 euro ($295) fine in an Italian court after neighbors complained it was waking them up too early.

ANSA news agency reported on Wednesday that the rooster's owner in Bolzano province would appeal the sentence, supported by the local Farmers' Association, on the grounds that he needs at least one rooster to breed chickens.

Madonna's Pink Sheep Outrages British PETA




Madonna dyes sheep for Vogue Living shoot, RSPCA outraged
Article from: The Daily Telegraph

By Bre Horan

November 28, 2007 12:00pm

MADONNA has horrified animal activists after dyeing her sheep blue, pink, yellow and green for a Vogue spread at their English country estate, in Wiltshire.

Madonna, 49, and husband Guy Ritchie, 39, insisted the dye used was temporary and did not harm the animals but an online report on music-news.com has said that the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) stated that even though the dye may be safe for the animals those who copy this stunt might not be so careful.

An RSPCA spokesperson said: "Why is it necessary and what are they trying to prove? It is an irresponsible publicity stunt. It sends out the wrong message about how to use animals."

The shoot was for the book Vogue Living: Houses, Gardens, People in which Madonna is one of 36 profiled celebs.

Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Wilbur




Stowaway piglet survives toilet roll ordeal
Tue Nov 20, 2007 10:57am EST

LONDON (Reuters) - A piglet nicknamed Andrex is recovering after being found in the back of a truck full of toilet paper at a supermarket.

The animal, thought to be two or three weeks old, was discovered in a delivery at a Tesco store in Ilkeston, Derbyshire.

Staff wrapped the piglet in a duvet and called the RSPCA, a Tesco spokesman said Tuesday.

He was taken to an animal shelter in Radcliffe-on-Trent, outside Nottingham, suffering from cuts and bruises to his snout.

"We will now care for him until he is fit enough to be found a permanent home," said Ella Herring, the shelter's deputy manager.

Tesco said store workers were unsure of how the piglet came to be on the truck, but thought it may have been a prank.

"Staff are used to dealing with the unexpected, but little Andrex's arrival was a shock," a Tesco spokesman said. "They took it in their stride, wrapping him up straightaway in a duvet in the manager's office and calling the RSPCA for advice and help."

© Reuters2007All rights reserved

Doggie Dresses




Dog owners go barking mad for fancy dress
Tue Nov 20, 2007 1:56pm EST

By Paul Majendie

LONDON (Reuters) - Darth Labrador. Dogzilla. Elvis the hound dog. No outfit is too outrageous for man's best friend.

The British do love a party animal -- they have gone crazy dressing up their dogs for costume parties.

Sales soared by 300 percent over Halloween. Now costumiers have lined up a festive big seller -- the one-size-fits-all Santa pet hat for the dog determined to have a great Christmas.

"Some cynics would say the British love their dogs more than they do other people," said Benjamin Webb, spokesman for Angels Fancy Dress who have been supplying costumes for humans since 1840 and are now on a canine winning streak.

"It's an American tradition that the British have made their own. In Britain, the quiet man in accounts comes to a party dressed as Superman whereas the Americans go for crazy costumes.

"The British are so quiet and reserved. That is why it's more like wishful thinking," he told Reuters.

The costumes range in price from 10 to 20 pounds. Humans can hire outfits, canines are not allowed to. "Dogs can't put down a deposit," Webb explained.

At the Angels Fancy Dress shop in Shaftesbury Avenue, situated in the heart of London theaterland, proud pet owners bring in their dogs to pick a suitable outfit.

If the demand keeps soaring, the shop may consider putting in a special fitting room complete with mirrors.

Webb said "They use dressing up as an extension of their own personality. We have clients who have identical costumes for themselves and their dogs. It's the whole situation of -- Love me, love my dog."

Appalling puns are clearly compulsory in the canine costume business -- as well as Dogzilla, owners can dress their dogs as football "Howligans" to celebrate "Happy Howloween."

One of the biggest sellers is the rock superstar dog -- for anyone who fancies bedecking their immaculately bred golden retriever in a diamante Elvis-style cape, collar and flared trousers.

Webb is as bemused as anyone that the British have lifted silliness to new heights.

"Nobody would have seen this coming. They really have taken this to their hearts. We love our animals and we have these secret desires we want to fulfill."

But he said felines do draw the line at dressing up.

"This is a canine fashion. Cats are far too single-minded and refuse to follow fashion," he said.

© Reuters2007All rights reserved

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Adorable




BBC NEWS

Kittens 'adopted' by pet rabbit
Six abandoned kittens have found an unexpected new mother figure - a pet rabbit.

Veterinary nurse Melanie Humble took the three-week-old kittens to her Aberdeen home.

The kittens seemed to think Summer the rabbit was their mother and began to climb all over her and try to feed from her.

Efforts will be made to find the four males and two females permanent homes in the coming weeks.

Melanie, 29, told the BBC Scotland news website: "The abandoned kittens were handed in when they were about three weeks old and I took them home.

"Summer the rabbit was taken inside on Bonfire Night because of the fireworks and the kittens seemed to really like her and thought she was their mother."

'She's gigantic'

She added: "They were trying to get milk from her and climbing over her. And Summer was not bothered by them at all.

"Summer is five months old and she's gigantic. It is lovely to see them all together.

"They are all doing well and Cats Protection will re-home them."
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/north_east/7101506.stm

Published: 2007/11/19 11:02:04 GMT

© BBC MMVII

Friday, November 16, 2007

Squirrel Olympics





Squirrel's epic swim across lake

Tourists on board a pleasure boat in the Lake District could not believe their eyes when they spotted a red squirrel in the middle of Ullswater.

The mammals can swim, but they find it very strenuous, and have been known to drown in water troughs.

But this determined squirrel had swum 300 yards (274m) - or about the length of six swimming pools - from the shore.

Passengers lowered a rope to the mammal and it climbed on board and hitched a lift back to shore.

Robert Benson, chairman of the Penrith and District Red Squirrel Group, said: "I've been involved with the conservation of red squirrels for 15 years and I know they can swim, but I have never seen it.

"This squirrel was swimming strongly and had its tail coiled on its back so it didn't look bedraggled or as if it was struggling.

"I've never seen anything like it before."

Once ashore the squirrel ran along a fence and disappeared, apparently none the worse for its dip.

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Paris Denies Trying to Help Alcoholic Elephants




Paris Hilton denies bid to help boozy elephants

By staff writers

November 14, 2007 11:21am
Article from: NEWS.com.au

PARIS Hilton has taken time out from saving the world to deny reports that she was helping raise the plight of binge-drinking elephants in India.

The 26-year-old American socialite, whose plan to do charity work in Rwanda has been postponed until next year, was reportedly concerned about elephants getting drunk on farmers' homemade rice beer before going on rampages.

"The elephants get drunk all the time," the World Entertainment News Network quoted Hilton, who was jailed this year in an alcohol-related driving case, as saying.

"It is becoming really dangerous. We need to stop making alcohol available to them."

Lori Berk, a publicist for Hilton, said she never made any comments about helping drunken elephants.

Last month, six wild elephants that broke into a farm in the state of Meghalaya were electrocuted after drinking the potent brew and then uprooting a power pole.

"There would have been more casualties if the villagers hadn't chased them away. And four elephants died in a similar way three years ago. It is just so sad," Hilton was reported as saying in Tokyo last week, where she was judging a beauty contest.

People for Animals' Sangeeta Goswami took Hilton's interest seriously.

"I am indeed happy Hilton has taken note of recent incidents of wild elephants in northeast India going berserk after drinking homemade rice beer and getting killed."

"As part of her global elephant campaign, Hilton should, in fact, think of visiting this region literally infested with elephants," Mr Goswami said.

Another conservationist , who also believed Hilton, said elephant alcohol abuse was only a symptom of environmental degradation.

"Elephants appear on human settlements ... because they have no habitat left due to wanton destruction of forests," Soumyadeep Dutta, who heads Nature's Beckon, a leading regional conservation group, said.

"A celebrity like Hilton must focus her attention on this fact."

Slutty Crocs




Chlamydia killing thousands of crocs
Anna Salleh
ABC Science Online

Monday, 18 September 2006

Chlamydia infects the back of the crocodiles' throats, causing an inflammation that blocks the airway (Image: Berrimah Veterinary Laboratories)
Chlamydia is suffocating thousands of young, farmed crocodiles in Australia's north, say experts.

Dr Ian Jerrett, senior veterinary pathologist at the Northern Territory government's Berrimah Veterinary Laboratories, says the disease is killing saltwater crocodiles (Crocodilus porosus).

"I think it's the first very serious disease of crocodiles that we've recognised since farming started," Jerrett says.

The disease affects young crocodiles, between three and five months old, causing an eye discharge and severe inflammation at the back of the throat that stops them from breathing.

"These crocodiles are dying from obstruction of the larynx," says Jerrett. "They can't breathe because of the amount of damage in the back of the throat."

The disease has been found so far on four of the five large crocodile farms in the Northern Territory, says Jerrett, with two farms seriously affected.

"One farm, over a period of two months, lost about 2000 of their young crocodiles, which was nearly the whole crop for that year," he says.

"And another farm lost over 1000 which was about 30% of their crop for the year."

At first a pox virus was suspected but virtually all the samples taken from the animals have since shown the culprit is chlamydia, unusual bacteria that need host cells to multiply.

The researchers will use DNA analysis to compare the strain to those that infect other animals such as wild birds. But they suspect it will be a strain specific to crocodiles.

The strain involved is related to the strains that infect columnar epithelial cells in the genitals and eyes of koalas and humans, says Jerrett.

But in crocodiles, columnal epithelial cells extend from the eye into the lining of the throat, which is why the chlamydia causes much more serious effects.

The bacteria, which are shed from the eyes, genitals and faeces of infected crocodiles, can be transmitted easily through the water in the ponds they are kept in, says Jerrett.

Origin unknown

Jerrett says further research is required to find out where the chlamydia came from.

He says the bacteria have probably existed at a low level for some time in the crocodile population, harboured in older crocodiles that can live with the bacteria their whole life.

The researchers believe an unusually cold dry season suppressed the immune system of the young crocodiles and made them susceptible to the bacteria.

So far the researchers have only detected chlamydia in a few older crocodiles, usually in those that have some other infection that has reduced their immunity.

If further testing reveals only a few of the older crocodiles are infected with chlamydia then Jerrett says the animals could be treated with antibiotics in their food.

But if the bacteria are widespread in the older animals then the disease could still spread despite antibiotics, which are not effective in treating 100% of animals.

In this case, the solution would be to quarantine the young crocodiles until they are old enough to withstand infection, says Jerrett.

The researchers have not yet sampled wild crocodiles, but Jerrett suspects the disease is more of a problem for farmed animals where large numbers are kept together in one place.

Apart from koalas and birds, chlamydia causes disease in animals like sheep and calves, and infects marsupials at a low level, says Jerrett.

Like a Fish Out of Water




Tropical fish can live for months out of water

By Mica Rosenberg Wed Nov 14, 3:27 PM ET

GUATEMALA CITY (Reuters) - A tropical fish that lives in mangrove swamps across the Americas can survive out of water for months at a time, similar to how animals adapted to land millions of years ago, a new study shows.
ADVERTISEMENT

The Mangrove Rivulus, a type of small tropical killifish, seeks refuge in shallow pools of water in crab burrows, coconut shells or even old beer cans in the tropical mangrove swamps of Belize, the United States and Brazil.

When their habitat dries up, they live on the land in logs, said Scott Taylor, a researcher at the Brevard County Environmentally Endangered Lands Program in central Florida.

The fish, whose scientific name is Rivulus marmoratus, can grow as large as three inches. They group together in logs hollowed out by insects and breathe air through their skin instead of their gills until they can find water again.

The scientific breakthrough came after a trip to Belize.

"We kicked over a log and the fish just came tumbling out," Taylor told Reuters in neighboring Guatemala by telephone. He said he will publish his study on the fish in The American Naturalist journal early next year.

In lab tests, Taylor said he found the fish can survive for up to 66 days out of water without eating, and their metabolism keeps functioning.

CLUE TO EVOLUTION

Some other fish can survive briefly out of water. The walking catfish found in Southeast Asia can wriggle over land for hours at a time, while lungfish found in Australia, Africa and South America can survive out of water, but only in a dormant state.

No other known fish can be out of water as long as the Mangrove Rivulus and remain active, according to Patricia Wright, a biologist at Canada's University of Guelph.

"They can survive for weeks without really dropping their metabolic rate. They remain relatively responsive and active for weeks in air," she said.

The fish may hold clues to how animals evolved over time.

"These animals live in an environment that is similar to conditions that existed millions of year ago, when animals began making the transition from water onto land," she added.

Surviving on land is not the only unusual behavior exhibited by the fish. They have both testes and ovaries and essentially clone themselves by laying their own, already fertilized eggs.

"This is probably the coolest fish around, not only do they have a very bizarre sex life, but they really don't meet standard behavioral criteria for fishes," said Taylor in a summary of his paper.

(Editing by Sandra Maler)

Giant Grouper




La. medical student lands 359-lb grouper
11/13/2007, 5:31 p.m. EST
The Associated Press

THIBODAUX, La. (AP) — A medical student who blindfolds his friends to keep his favorite offshore fishing spot secret has come up with a record-beating fish — a warsaw grouper weighing 359.1 pounds.

The giant hauled in by J.J. Tabor of Thibodaux is 12 ounces above the previous Louisiana state record, a state biologist confirmed.

It's been cut down to fillets. The first fillet weighed 53 pounds, Tabor said.

He caught it near an oil rig 70 miles south of Fourchon, in 400 feet of water. He won't give a more specific description.

"It's J.J.'s secret," said Joey Rodrigue, a friend from Baton Rouge who joined Tabor and Tabor's father, John, on the record-making trip Saturday. "I don't even know where I was. He blindfolds us on the way out."

Tabor said he thought at first that his hook with a live hardtail on it had it the bottom "until I felt the big head shake."

Rodrigue steered away from the rig.

"I put myself in a harness and just had to lay back and fight," J.J. Tabor said. "It was about a 15 or 20 minute fight."

Tabor cleaned the fish late Monday afternoon outside his father's auto repair shop in Thibodaux. "We'll split it up," he said. "I'll make some phone calls and try to get rid of it fresh. The rest, we'll vacuum pack it and cook it later."

Tabor says he believes the fish is about 33 years old. He plans to send an inner-ear bone called the otolith to a university in Florida where researchers can help determine the age of the fish. He hopes to get the results in about four weeks.

The world record, caught off Florida in 1985, is 436 pounds, 12 ounces.

Sasquatch




Small Town Overcome By Mysterious Ape Sightings

Some Believe Animal Is An Orangutan

POSTED: 3:49 pm EST November 13, 2007
UPDATED: 3:53 pm EST November 13, 2007

GLEN ST. MARY, Fla. -- Mysterious ape sightings are bringing excitement to a sleepy Florida town.

Residents have been hearing screeches in the night and stories of sightings echo on every corner.

The local newspaper even ran a story about the sightings.

"There is kind of that 'I've seen a bigfoot' type of feel to it," said resident Eric Lawson. "They said it made a nest in that tree, so it's probably somewhere here in the area."

Some believe the mysterious animal is an orangutan -- one local family had found what looked to be an orange ape up high in a tree.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission investigator who answered the original complaint call on the orange ape said there was definitely something up in the top of the tree, but he really couldn't be sure what it was.

He said he took a pack of jelly donuts and left it at the bottom of the tree, hoping to lure the creature to the ground.

He said he hasn't heard anything since.

"The next morning, the people came out and it was, it was gone," Lawson said.

If the mysterious animal was an ape, where did it come from? State officials said no one in Baker County is licensed to own an orangutan.

Distributed by Internet Broadcasting Systems, Inc. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

This Hedgehog is Not a Model




Diet for Mr Piggy-Winkle

Thorny issue ... hedgehog's weight

Published: 14 Nov 2007

GEORGE the hedgehog looks more like a porky-pine after scoffing his way to FOUR times the average size.

He was handed to a wildlife sanctuary in Leatherhead, Surrey, by householders worried he must have an illness.

In fact George, who weighs nearly five pounds and measures more than 31 inches around, was just fat.

Staff are putting him on a six-month diet.

Those Slutty Little Potoroos






Rare potoroo cursed by the pox

Dani Cooper
ABC Science Online

Wednesday, 14 November 2007

A baby Gilbert's potoroo in its mother's pouch (Image: Rebecca Vaughan)
Australia's most endangered marsupial, the Gilbert's potoroo, is suffering from a severe case of syphilis, according to a long-term study.

The disease may affect its ability to reproduce, the study says, further threatening the wild population, which is believed to number fewer than 40.

Murdoch University veterinarian Dr Rebecca Vaughan is now undertaking a penicillin-based trial on a long-nosed potoroo, the nearest relative to the Gilbert's potoroo.

Vaughan, a PhD candidate with the School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences, says if the trial at Perth Zoo is successful, researchers will evaluate the feasibility of similar treatment for the Gilbert's potoroo.

Gilbert's potoroo was thought to be extinct for more than 100 years until a small population of about 30 animals was discovered in 1994 at Two Peoples Bay Nature Reserve, near Albany in southwest Western Australia.

The wild population is restricted to 1800 hectares of heath land within the reserve.

Among a range of health conditions, Vaughan has found about 80% of the Gilbert's potoroo population is infected with a form of the bacteria treponema, which is similar to the microbe that causes syphilis in rabbits.

Infected male potoroos suffer severe inflammation of the penis and have a bright green discharge from their bottoms.

Vaughan says in some instances the inflammation is so severe the male potoroos cannot extrude their penis, obviously making it hard for them to mate.

She says syphilis in rabbits decreases rates of conception, placenta retention and leads to neonatal deaths.

Managing populations

Vaughan's research into the health of the critically endangered mammal forms part of the Gilbert's potoroo recovery efforts, co-ordinated by Dr Tony Friend from the Western Australian Department of Environment and Conservation.

Friend says Vaughan's research will help to manage the surviving Gilbert's potoroo population as it will increase knowledge about their susceptibility to disease.

"When you get to such low numbers disease can become significant," he says.

"What we don't understand is if the males are entering fully into breeding and how it is affecting them.

"The question is whether the treponema is affecting the population significantly causing loss of individuals that can't be made up through breeding."

Friend says the Gilbert's potoroo population appears to be stable at Two Peoples Bay and other recovery projects are building up the population.

Thriving elsewhere

While a captive breeding program has met with little success, a group of the marsupials translocated to Bald Island, about 30 kilometres off the coast from Two Peoples Bay is thriving.

From a base population of nine Gilbert's potoroos placed on the island about three years ago, there are now 13 of the guinea pig-like creatures, with the latest generation now ready to breed.

The recovery program is also trialling cross-fostering of young with long-nosed potoroos to allow the original mother a shorter time between young. Two out of three trials have been successful.

Friend says the program is also reintroducing potoroos for breeding into fenced areas away from the main population at Two Peoples Bay.

Within five years he hopes to release Gilbert's potoroos into unfenced mainland areas with a goal of having about 100 Gilbert's potoroos living in the wild.

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Does this Seal Have Feet?




* Nov 14, 2007 2:54 pm US/Eastern

Baby Seal Walks A Mile To Calif. Animal Shelter

TRACY, Calif. (CBS) ―

It may not be a fish out of water, but it's close.

A baby seal is recovering after being found wandering the streets of a Northern California town, reports CBS station KOVR-TV in Sacramento, Calif.

The five-month-old Northern fur seal waddled about a mile from the Pacific Ocean and ended up at the front steps of the Tracy Animal Shelter in Tracy, about 60 miles east of Sacramento.

Animal control officers quickly corralled the feisty pup but it wasn't easy.

The pup is now at the Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito.

Doctors say the seal is severely malnourished, but they are encouraged because he's already swimming and eating.

Street Justice




Fleeing Robbery Suspect Eaten By Alligator

POSTED: 7:31 am EST November 13, 2007
UPDATED: 7:52 am EST November 13, 2007

MIAMI -- A Florida man police said was breaking into cars at Miccosukee Resort and Gaming was attacked and killed by a 9-foot alligator while trying to run from police.

Investigators said officers responded to reports of car break-ins at a Miccosukee Indian Reservation parking lot located at 500 S.W. 177th Ave. in Miami.

One of the men was quickly captured by officers during the incident last week but the other robbery suspect tried to elude officer by jumping into a large pond behind the facility, according to a WJXT-TV report.

During the swim, police said, an alligator attacked and killed the man. He was apparently bitten on the head several times.

The victim's body was recovered at the bottom of the pond about a day after the reported break-ins.

The men were not identified in the report.

Meanwhile, an alligator believed responsible for attacking and then killing the man was captured and transported to All American Gator in Pembroke Park.

"Some alligators just have a nasty disposition and he was just a nasty gator," owner of All American Gator Brian Woods said. "He seemed to have no fear of people."

The alligator is being kept in storage until the medical examiner's office can inspect the reptile, a trapper said.

Miccosukee employees said the alligator was well-known on the reservation and was given the nickname "Poncho."

"Anytime an alligator digests or even kills a person, it is a state law through the Florida Fish and Game that the gator be destroyed," Woods said.

Watch Local 6 News for more on this story.

Copyright 2007 by Internet Broadcasting Systems and Local6.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Zoo Rescues Baby Hyenas



Former pet hyenas make home at zoo
By Sharna Johnson: CNJ staff writer
November 10 2007 9:16 PM

A contest to name the new hyenas at the Hillcrest Park Zoo starts today. At 10 months old, the hyenas are about one-third of the size of full-grown adults, zoo clerk Laura Shepler said.

Timid and still adjusting to their new home, a pair of spotted hyenas at Hillcrest Park Zoo are an unusual addition to the park’s menagerie, according to zookeeper Mark Yanotti.

Yanotti said hyenas are relatively sparse in zoos and Hillcrest is excited to display the pair.

In 2005 there were only 123 spotted hyenas reported to be living in zoos, according to data from the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums.

“They were (raised) on the bottle. They’ve never been around other hyenas,” he said.

Yanotti said they were kept as pets before they were confiscated and taken to an animal park in Texas.

Hillcrest Park Zoo was considering a new animal to exhibit when a zookeeper came across an online ad for the hyenas.

Yanotti said the City Commission granted their request and the cubs were purchased for $9,500. “We rarely buy animals, most of them are donated,” he said.

The pair will be encouraged to breed, Yanotti said, and if successful, their cubs sold.

“We’re not going to count on it, (but) it would be nice to help generate some funding for the zoo through them,” he said.

The 10-month-olds arrived in early October and occupy a habitat near the entrance to the park.

Yanotti said hyenas are tough and capable hunters, but they’re also opportunists known for chasing off predators to steal their prey.

Though naturally hyenas live in female-dominated clan societies, the Clovis pair is still developing and the male has been the more assertive of the two, he said.

The female has been more reserved, according to Yanotti.

“He’s running things now, but that will change soon. “She will be top dog, she will put him in his place,” Yanotti said.

“I’m afraid he better enjoy it while he can.”

Name the hyenas

The new hyenas at Hillcrest Park Zoo do not have names. The zoo has teamed with the Clovis News Journal for a contest to name the cubs.

The resident with the winning submission will earn a one-year family membership to the zoo and a three-month subscription to the CNJ.

A three-person committee — two from the zoo and one from the newspaper — will select the winning entry.

Three ways to enter:

Web: cnjonline.com/zoo

E-mail: zoo1@cityofclovis.org

Mail: Hillcrest Park Zoo
P.O. Box 760
Clovis N.M. 88101

Deadline for submissions is Nov. 30, the winner will be announced Dec. 9.

Hyena trivia

Habitat — They range
throughout most of Africa south of the Sahara. They once lived in South Africa but were eliminated in much of that region. They prefer open country, even semi-desert, and are rarely found in forested areas.

Size — They have a body length of 22–66 inches and have a height of 28–37 inches at the shoulder. Adults weigh 120–189 pounds. Females are larger than males.

Lifespan — About 20 years in the wild and up to 41 years in captivity.

Reproduction — Males are
sexually mature at 3 years old, females later. Gestation lasts a little less than four months with one to four per pregnancy. Newborns are black and weigh about 3 pounds. Unlike most carnivores, hyenas are born with their eyes open, many of their teeth fully formed, and can even pull
themselves along the ground with their front paws.

Family — The spotted hyena lives in a clan, which can have as many as 80 individuals. A clan is under the leadership of a dominant (alpha) female.

Gender — Hyenas are often referred to as hermaphrodites because females have reproductive organs that appear very similar to male hyenas.

Laughing — A noisy animal, the hyena’s sound is often described as a cackle, or “laugh.” It has given rise to their nickname of “laughing hyenas.”

Source: www.zoo.org

Further Proof that Cats are Smarter than Dogs




Tuesday, 11/13/07

Dogs eat the darnedest things, UT finds
Veterinary college has seen it all, from bras to fish hooks

By DARREN DUNLAP
The Knoxville News Sentinel

KNOXVILLE — When Melissa Kennedy's dog, Bubba, ate a section of the kitchen floor, she had to take him to the nearest emergency veterinary clinic.

Bubba, a mixed-breed chow, hadn't simply chewed up the linoleum floor. He had eaten and swallowed sections of it.


Kennedy, also a veterinarian and faculty member at the University of Tennessee's College of Veterinary Medicine, was relieved when the linoleum was "fished out" using an endoscope rather than surgery.

While she was at the pet ER, she got a reason for his strange choice of snack. Staff discovered he had chronic gastritis caused by helicobacter, which can result in dogs' eating strange or nonfood items. Veterinarians call this condition pica.

Sometimes dogs eat strange things because of nutritional deficiencies.

Sometimes they have liver disease.

And sometimes, veterinarians will tell you, dogs eat the darnedest things, and it's not always clear why.

"Sometimes it can be quirk," said Kennedy. "Sometimes it's an odor."

For a broad sampling of the objects that dogs eat (and survive), you need look only as far as the UT College of Veterinary Medicine and its adjoining teaching hospital.

An e-mail request for a roll call of these objects and corresponding stories elicited a number of responses in less than 24 hours.

No one reported their dogs had died from consuming the odd objects devoured and (sometimes) recovered.

Underwear was a popular entry.

One woman lost a "yellow smiley face" bra to her pooch.

Another woman reported losing several items, including pantyhose and 13 pairs of underwear. The dog also ate rope and rocks, but only the underwear had to be surgically removed.

Thong eaten by boxer

Veterinarians once discovered a Victoria's Secret thong in the belly of a boxer. It was gray when they found it, but they thought it might have been white at one time.

Jewelry made the list as well.

A woman lost a diamond pendant necklace to a cocker spaniel puppy. The family waited, and, two days later, retrieved it when the puppy passed the pendant, a gift from a boyfriend.

Some owners have lost paychecks to their hounds.

"My parents have a Lab mix who has eaten two paychecks. Both times there was not a scrap of the paycheck left. Try explaining that to an employer," replied one person at the veterinary hospital.

Dogs like hemp twine (a 50-foot section of it, in one canine's case) and ribbon for presents.

"My Zoie has an affinity for curling ribbon," one faculty member responded. "It seems she can always find it (especially at the holidays), and it takes about two days to
pass."

UT library books, squeakers from dog toys, exposed wiring from a trailer, six tube socks (at once), rubber bands, door glass, napkins, a peppermint plant, and toys.

Dogs devoured things that seemed like food, staff and faculty reported.

A 7-pound Chihuahua ate 125 Super Complex-B tablets. Another dog ate a large jar of Vaseline. Then there was the pooch who gobbled two 5-pound bags of Dum Dums and spicy jerky.

Karen Tobias, a surgeon at UT's veterinary hospital, said the staff sees a lot of dogs that have swallowed fish hooks.

Her advice to owners: Don't pull on the line because it'll set the hook.

Endoscope is handy

Using an endoscope — a long, flexible tube that can be sent down a digestive tract — veterinarians can view an object such as a hook and retrieve it.

They get a lot of retriever-type dogs that carry things around and swallow them, she said. But one of the cases that stuck with her was that of a Great Dane puppy, barely a year old.

"The owner noticed not only that some of his toys were missing, but that it was starting to have some problems vomiting," she said.

It wasn't clear from endoscopy what was in the dog's stomach, either. But when Tobias went in surgically to remove it, two plastic toys popped out, each about the size of a fist. They were plastic birds, and she named them "Hekyll and Jekyll."

Veterinarians try to get dogs to vomit or pass objects when possible.

For one thing, surgery can be expensive. Depending on the case, X-rays, blood work,
anesthesia, surgery and aftercare can run about $1,300 to $1,400.

Cattle Escape




Cows escape near northern Utah McDonald's

Last Update: 11/13 1:33 pm
Print Story | Email Story

WEST HAVEN, Utah (AP) - Eight cows escaped from a trailer when the rear gate opened as the driver pulled into a McDonald's. It took about two hours to round them up yesterday.

The roundup was called "Operation Hamburger Helper." A nearby resident even hopped on his horse. Wayne Sanders says he couldn't believe the sight. He was at a truck stop next door when it happened. He says the cows probably weighed 800 pounds were on a good trot.

--- Information from: Standard-Examiner

(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Gross




Teacher Kills Raccoon With Nail Gun In Front Of Class

POSTED: 2:55 pm CST November 13, 2007
UPDATED: 3:00 pm CST November 13, 2007

HUNTSVILLE, Ark. -- A Huntsville teacher who killed a live animal on school grounds to show students how to skin one will not be disciplined, authorities said.

Jerick Hutchinson, who teaches an agriculture class at Huntsville High School, killed a raccoon with a nail gun and took outside to his truck to show students how to skin it, officials said.

District officials subsequently created a policy that no animal can be killed on school grounds, and all dissections must have corresponding, detailed lesson plans.

"You can't undo what's been done, but you can make sure it doesn't happen again," said Huntsville superintendent Alvin Lievsay.

Any student who didn't want to watch did not have to, officials said.

Copyright 2007 4029tv.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

Strange Cat






Cat's daily routine baffles owner

A cat is baffling his owner by wandering off at night before expecting to be collected by car every morning at exactly the same time and place.

Sgt Podge, a Norwegian Forest Cat, disappears from his owner's home in Talbot Woods, Bournemouth, every night.

The next morning, the 12-year-old cat can always be found in exactly the same place, on a pavement about one and a half miles (2.4km) away.

His owner, Liz Bullard, takes her son to school before collecting Sgt Podge.

She said the routine began earlier this year, when Sgt Podge disappeared one day.

Sgt Podge is collected by his owner
Owner Liz Bullard thinks Sgt Podge crosses a golf course every night

Ms Bullard rang the RSPCA and began telephoning her neighbours to see if anyone had seen him.

An elderly woman who lived about one and a half miles away called back to say she had found a cat matching Sgt Podge's description.

Ms Bullard collected him but within days he vanished again. She rang the elderly woman to find Sgt Podge was back outside her home.

She said a routine has now become established, where each morning she takes her son to school before driving to collect Sgt Podge from the pavement between 0800 and 0815 GMT.

It is thought Sgt Podge walks across Meyrick Park Golf Course every night to reach his destination.

Ms Bullard said: "If it's raining he may be in the bush but he comes running if I clap my hands."

When he gets home Sgt Podge has breakfast before going to sleep

All she has to do is open the car passenger door from the inside for Sgt Podge to jump in.

Ms Bullard also makes the trip at weekends and during school holidays - when her son is having a lie in.

She does not know why, after 12 years, Sgt Podge has begun the routine but explained that another woman who lived nearby used to feed him sardines, and that he may be on the look-out for more treats.

"As long as you know where they are you don't mind as a cat owner," Ms Bullard said.

"I know where to collect him - as long as he's not wandering the streets."

Back at home, Sgt Podge has breakfast before going to sleep by a warm radiator.

Judge Punishes Goldfish Torturer




Judge honoured for sticking up for goldfish

November 13, 2007 - 4:16PM

A Brisbane District Court judge has been awarded a "Compassionate judge award" for publicly denouncing a man who flushed two goldfish down the toilet during a burglary at a woman's home.

PETA - People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals - today commended Judge Helen O'Sullivan for her comments during the burglary trial last month of Shane Robert Stevenson, from Russell Island.

Twenty-year-old Stevenson was labelled "sick" for ripping the woman's phone from the wall, stealing a PlayStation game console and flushing her two goldfish down the toilet.

At the time barrister Philip Curbishley said Stevenson, an unemployed former meat worker, had probably ransacked the home in search of cash but could provide no firm explanation for his behaviour other than that he was alcoholic.

"He's also an unattractive human being," Judge O'Sullivan said during sentencing.

"Some my find that humorous," she said of the fishes' untimely death.

"I don't. I find it a bit sick and obviously distressing to the owners."

She ordered Stevenson to serve a 12-month intensive corrections order - similar to a jail term served in the community - and ordered he undergo counselling.

PETA president Ingrid Newkirk commended Judge O'Sullivan for her stand against the cruelty to the fish.

"It is our hope that this ruling will send a message to would-be animals abusers that cruelty to any animal - no matter how small or misunderstood - will be taken seriously."

Judge O'Sulllivan will receive a framed certificate accompanied by a letter of appreciation.

Surgeons Save Owl





From left: Donna Rascoe, Dr. Leslie Mailler with the Oatland Island Wildlife Center, Dr. Daniel Brogdon and Leanne Jennings perform cataract surgery on a barred owl at the Savannah Animal Eye Clinic on Monday. (Hunter McRae/Savannah Morning News)

Cataract surgery is performed on this barred owl at the Savannah Animal Eye Clinic on Monday. (Hunter McRae/Savannah Morning News)Cataract surgery restores owl's sight
Coastal Empire
Jenel Few | Tuesday, November 13, 2007 at 12:30 am | (see enhanced version)

Procedure spares Oatland Island's Barred Owl from certain death

When cataracts developed in the one good eye of a partially blind, single-winged barred owl at Oatland Island Wildlife Center, it seemed as if his rough life might come to a tough end.

"Birds of prey that go blind don't eat or drink; kind of like when a falconer puts a hood over a falcon's head to keep it calm," said Lesley Mailler, Oatland Island's animal programs supervisor.

"He wouldn't eat, move around his habitat or drink."

But this owl will be up and eating mice in no time thanks to surgery performed Monday by veterinary ophthalmologist Dan Brogdon of the Animal Eye Clinic in Savannah.

"Any animal can get a cataract," Brogdon said. "Normally we see them in dogs where it is hereditary, but in wild birds it's due to injury typically."

Oatland Island's male barred owl was hit by a car in the 1980s - a common fate for many of these native Georgia birds that hunt rodents feasting on roadside trash.

The collision blinded the bird's right eye and his right wing had to be removed. For more than two decades he lived a comfortable enough life in his Oatland Island habitat, but he was always in the shadow of Wahoohoo, the center's beloved female barred owl used in the interactive children's exhibits and field trips.

He never even got a name.

Then a few weeks ago the blind, nameless bird stepped into the spotlight.

A keeper tried to feed the bird and noticed his behavior was aggressive and his left eye looked cloudy.

"Normally it's a non aggressive animal, and we knew something was wrong," said Oatland Island Director Chris Gentile. "He must have only been able to see shadows, because he acted like he didn't know if we were coming in to feed him or if it was a predator."

They took the owl to Brogdon, the only veterinary ophthalmologist in the region. He saw right away that the owl had cataracts.

Humans with similar vision loss might get glasses or contacts, but Brogdon said surgery was the only way to prevent the beautiful brown and white speckled bird from going blind. He offered to do the procedure for free.

Monday morning, Brogdon put on green hospital scrubs and a surgical mask and went to work.

It was a routine, but delicate 45-minute procedure in which the owl had to be anesthetized. Brogdon has done the procedure 15 times before on birds of prey from zoos.

"I make a small incision, and with a $50,000 phaco-emulsification machine I can go in with a needle, break up the cataract and aspirate it out," Brogdon said. "Once the cataract is out, he'll be able to see and he'll eat again."

The owl will have to spend a few days in isolation for eye drops and observation but will return to his habitat exhibit in a week, Gentile said.

The surgery will save the nameless owl's life.

"We ought to call him Lucky," Mailler said.

Man-Dog Love



P. Selvakumar married the sari-draped former stray named Selvi, chosen by family members and then bathed and clothed for the ceremony Sunday at a Hindu temple in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, the Hindustan Times newspaper said.
(enlarge photo)

P. Selvakumar, left, places a garland on a sari-draped former stray female dog named Selvi , during a marriage ceremony in Manamadurai, 470 kilometers (494 miles) south of Chennai, India, Sunday, Nov. 11, 2007. Selvakumar married a female dog in a traditional Hindu ceremony as an attempt to atone for stoning two other dogs to death, an act he believes cursed him, a newspaper reported Tuesday. (AP Photo/Dinamalar)

Man in India Marries Dog As Atonement

NEW DELHI — A man in southern India married a female dog in a traditional Hindu ceremony as an attempt to atone for stoning two other dogs to death — an act he believes cursed him — a newspaper reported Tuesday.

Selvakumar, 33, told the paper he had been suffering since he stoned two dogs to death and hung their bodies from a tree 15 years ago.

"After that my legs and hands got paralyzed and I lost hearing in one ear," he said in the report.

The paper said an astrologer had told Selvakumar the wedding was the only way he could cure the maladies. It did not say whether his situation had improved.

Deeply superstitious people in rural India sometimes organize weddings to dogs and other animals, believing it can ward off certain curses.

The paper showed a picture of Selvakumar sitting next to the dog, which was wearing an orange sari and a flower garland.

The paper said the groom and his family then had a feast, while the dog got a bun.

___

November 13, 2007 - 7:34 a.m. Copyright 2007, The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP Online news report may not be published, broadcast or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

Rampaging Monkey in India




Monkey Injures Several People in India

NEW DELHI — A wild monkey went on a rampage in a low-income neighborhood in the Indian capital, injuring several people, most of them children, police said Monday.

Police sub-inspector Gaje Singh told The Associated Press that the attacks started late Saturday in the Shastri Park area of New Delhi, adding that it was not immediately possible to give an exact tally of the injured. Local news reports said as many as 25 people were injured.

Singh said officers were patrolling the neighborhood in search of the rogue animal.

"But the monkey hasn't been spotted yet," Singh said.

People in Shastri Park often sleep outside their homes or on open roofs to escape the heat.

Neighborhood resident Naseema, who goes by one name, carried her 1-year-old daughter into her house in attempts to escape the animal. "The monkey followed me in and buried its teeth in my baby's leg," she told the Times of India newspaper.

As New Delhi's forest cover shrinks, rhesus macaque monkeys have overrun its government buildings, temples and residential areas, occasionally biting passers-by or snatching food from them. A government official died last month when he fell from his balcony during an attack by wild monkeys.

Part of the problem is that devout Hindus believe monkeys are manifestations of the god Hanuman and feed them bananas and peanuts, encouraging them to frequent public places.

Last year, the Delhi High Court reprimanded city authorities for not doing enough to stop the animals from terrifying residents.

City authorities have experimented with using langurs — a larger and fiercer kind of monkey — to scare or catch the macaques, but the problem persists.

___

November 13, 2007 - 12:23 a.m. Copyright 2007, The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP Online news report may not be published, broadcast or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

Millipedes' Revenge




German town builds anti-millipede wall

By Michael Leidig in Vienna
Last Updated: 2:19am GMT 12/11/2007

Residents of a German village are celebrating victory over an unwelcome invader: thousands of millipedes which have turned their streets, gardens and homes into something from a horror film.

A foot-high wall, which will eventually encircle Obereichstaett in Bavaria, has finally stemmed the nightly flow of the crawling creatures, which have afflicted the village every autumn for hundreds of years.

Bernhard Koderer, 45, who lives with his wife and two children, said: "Last year was the worst so far. The road to my house was completely covered.
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"You couldn't take a step without crushing a dozen underfoot. The smell was disgusting."

Hans Harrer, the mayor, said: "We have tried a complete blackout on street lamps in the autumn. But switching them off was not the solution."

Zoologists called in to advise were unable to tell the inhabitants where the millipedes - Megaphyllum unilineatum - came from, and instead helped design a metal-lined wall with an overhanging lip.

Poison was not a solution because so much would be needed.

Now, the creatures can instead be seen in their thousands crawling around the wall every night.

The problem is far from new: in the autumn of 1900, trains in the vicinity ground to a halt when millipedes on the tracks prevented their wheels from gripping.

Rattlesnake's Revenge




"Cobraman" Remains Hospitalized After 44th Venomous Snake Bite

POSTED: 6:55 am EST November 12, 2007
UPDATED: 6:58 am EST November 12, 2007

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- Maybe "Cobraman" should consider a new line of work.

Ray Hunter of Port St. Lucie is still hospitalized nearly two weeks after being bitten by an eastern diamondback rattlesnake.

He said it's his 44th venomous snake bite, and "definitely the worst."

The 44-year-old man known as "Cobraman" is licensed to possess venomous snakes. He got the rattlesnake from Port St. Lucie animal control officers.

Hunter said he was bitten on the right hand while cleaning his snake cages.

Hunter managed to drive himself to the hospital. He's now is in renal failure, his right arm remains largely swollen.

It was not known when he can return home.

Watch Local 6 News for more on this story. The snake is now at a zoo in another state.

Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Baby Bonobos




Zoos Welcome New Bundles of Joy

In this image released by the San Diego Zoo, a zoo worker cares for two of the worlds most critically endangered great apes, called bonobos, Friday, Nov. 9, 2007, at the San Diego Zoos Children Zoo nursery in San Diego. With wild populations being decimated at alarming rates in Democratic Republic of Congo, the recent birth of a male infant named Tutapenda, left, on Oct. 29 is a significant milestone for conservation efforts. He joins his two-month-old half-sister Mali who is also being hand-raised due to medical complications at birth.
(Ken Bohn/ Zoological Society of San Diego/ AP Photo )

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Human's Revenge




New York mulls $1,000 fine for feeding pigeons

By Edith Honan Mon Nov 12, 5:56 PM ET

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A New York City lawmaker wants to declare war on the city's pigeons and says he will not be dissuaded by the difficulties faced by London and Venice in ridding themselves of the ubiquitous birds.

City Councilman Simcha Felder on Monday called on the city to levy a fine of as much as $1,000 (490 pounds) on people feeding pigeons, distribute bird contraceptives, and employ hawks to scare the birds away.

He also suggested appointing a "pigeon czar" to orchestrate the fight, a plan that has ruffled the feathers of animal lovers.

"Cities are lifeless places. People don't appreciate the fact that we have some wildlife," said Al Streit, director of The Pigeon People, an organization that rescues injured birds.

Felder said he doesn't expect to rid the city of pigeons but that it was time to combat what he called a public health hazard.

Felder said pigeons and their droppings are host to several severe communicable diseases, though a report released by his office noted that cases "are rare and the threat is often exaggerated."

London has outlawed feeding pigeons in Trafalgar Square and brought in trained hawks to kill them. But pigeons still flock to the square, and Mayor Ken Livingston has come under fire for the program's high cost.

Venice is trying to stop the sale of bird seed in St. Mark's Square and prevent pigeons from chipping away at marble statues and buildings. Licensed bird feed sellers do not want to go and animal rights activists have also expressed concern.

This summer, Los Angeles said it would introduce a pigeon contraceptive called OvoControl P to reduce the population.

"The fact is that people have been disgusted and annoyed," said Felder, adding that he frequently dodges pigeon droppings at his Brooklyn subway station. "I might as well say that I'm sick and tired of it."

This isn't the first time New York City has tried to control its pigeon population. In 2003, a hawk was briefly employed to scare pigeons in a Manhattan park but the program was abandoned a few months later after the hawk attacked a Chihuahua.

Hearings on Felder's plan may be called before the end of the year.

(Editing by Daniel Trotta and Eric Beech)

Cockatoo's Revenge




Man dies trying to rescue cockatoo from tree
Article from: AAP

November 13, 2007 09:17am

A MAN has died in a fall from a tree while trying to rescue his neighbour's pet cockatoo near Bendigo, in central Victoria.
The tragic mishap occurred about 10.30pm (AEDT) yesterday in a vacant block at a new housing estate in Greenfield Drive, at Epsom, on the northern outskirts of Bendigo, 160km north of Melbourne.

Victoria Police said the 58-year-old man climbed a gum tree to rescue a neighbour's cockatoo, which had been perched in the tree for several hours.

"The man has slipped and fallen, dying instantly," a police spokeswoman said.

Earlier the cockatoo's owner, a 72-year-old man from Epsom, climbed the same tree in an attempt to rescue the bird, but slipped and fell.

He was taken to Bendigo hospital in a satisfactory condition with suspected spinal injuries.

Bendigo Police Sergeant Peter Gilmore said a report into the death was being prepared for the coroner.

Sgt Gilmore said the dead man was trying to do a good deed when it went tragically wrong.

His wife was standing at the base of the tree when the accident happened, he said.

"His wife was watching," Sgt Gilmore told ABC radio.

"This was just an unfortunate accident that wasn't foreseen, especially climbing up late at night, they need to be very careful," he said.

Otter's Revenge




Possibly Rabid Otters On The Attack In Merritt Island

POSTED: 11:36 am EST November 12, 2007
UPDATED: 6:08 pm EST November 12, 2007

MERRITT ISLAND, Fla. -- Sometimes things just sound too strange to be true. Otters are on the attack in Brevard County. At least one woman and two dogs have been attacked. All the reported incidents have been on South Merritt Island bordered by two rivers.

One otter has been caught, but there may be more out there. Residents have reported seeing the sick otters on their yard, even on their docks and the river otters come from either the Indian or Banana rivers.

If there is a hero in the rabid otter tale, it has to be Taz, the 10-year-old Westie who fought off one frothing otter to keep it away from the Linnett family.

"He was bit right under here, right under the mouth area," explained Mrs. Linnett.

Those who watched the fight said the two animals rolled around like two balls of fur. The dog came out bloody, but Animal Control got the otter.

"Took 'em a while. He was mean," Linnett said.

Just a day earlier, without the protection of a pet, Patrick Martin's wife was bitten twice.

"Noticed, she told me, its cute little face and how innocent it seemed to be. Then while she was looking at it, it bit her again," Patrick said.

The normally timid animal rarely shows itself along the river banks. Most see otters only in zoos or a show at SeaWorld, though they are not uncommon in many Central Florida lakes.

Animal Control officers still aren't sure if one or more sick otters are wandering the shores, so residents are warned to watch their pets and their backs. As for Taz, he's up to date on his rabies shots, but still under owner quarantine for 45 days.

"Taz is still alive, so I think he won," Linnett said.

The necropsy on the captured otter will take days or even weeks before determining if it actually has rabies. In the meantime, residents are going to keep a lookout for other sick otters.

Otters may look cute, but Eyewitness News learned attacks aren't unheard of. In April 2004, Blue Springs State Park in Volusia County was closed to swimmers because a rabid otter attacked eight swimmers. The otter was caught and killed. Last year in Boca Raton, an otter dragged a full-grown black lab into the water and attacked it. The owner punched the otter to save the dog.

Copyright 2007 by wftv.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Ghost Cloud




Unexplained Blue Cloud Floats, Darts Around Customers At Gas Station

Witness: 'It Gives Me Chills'

A strange blue cloud seen floating and darting around customers, freezing for 30 minutes and then speeding from an Ohio gas station, remains unexplained even though it was caught on security cams.

The ghostly image was seen moving near and over cars at a Marathon gas station located near the corner of State Road and Pleasant Valley in Parma on Sunday.

Surveillance video of the image showed it flipping and then sitting in the same location for 30 minutes.

It then flies off the screen at a high rate of speed.

"It gives me the chills," a witness said.

Security video then shows it coming back and resting on a car window before floating away.

Several people said they believe the image is a ghost or an angel.

"It was an angel," a witness said. "There was an angel here."

The owner of the gas station said he was happy the image went away and has not come back.

"I actually watched it for 30 minutes and then actually I watched it move and that is when I got freaked out," said owner Amed Abudaaria.

Groups of people have traveled to the gas station after word spread of the unexplained event.

Watch Local 6 News for more on this story.


Copyright 2007 by Internet Broadcasting Systems and Local6.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Monday, November 12, 2007

Good News for Sparky




Four months after tragedy, Sparky's ready for adoption

20 applicants will meet the dog tonight

By SAEED AHMED
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 11/12/07

It's the happy tail of the little dog that could.

Sparky, the schnauzer-terrier mix that battled for his life for almost four months after he was dragged behind a car in Clayton County last summer, is ready for adoption.

Sparky's recovery is nothing short of miraculous, his caregivers say.

"He's gone from a dog we didn't know day to day whether he would live or die, to a spunky happy terrier that we know will have a full life," said Carolyn Baars, the woman who has been looking after Sparky at her home in Atlanta.

On July 24, horrified motorists watched as a year-old dog was dragged along the I-75 Frontage Road near Forest Parkway, its leash tied to the back bumper of a car. No one knows how long the dog struggled to free himself, but eventually the leash either snapped or the dog managed to slip from the collar.

He lost nails and pads on all four paws. He was missing a patch of skin on one side that was so large that it could not be stitched shut. The bandages covering his feet had to be changed frequently. And when they were, vets had to anesthetize him because he was in such pain.

And yet, the dog showed such a tolerance for pain and a spunky demeanor that the vets at Paces Ferry Veterinary Clinic in Vinings named him "Sparky."

Despite a $10,000 reward for information, the person responsible for Sparky's ordeal has not been found.

After his story was reported in the local media, hundreds of pet lovers contacted Atlanta Pet Rescue — the nonprofit caring for Sparky — asking how they could adopt him, said spokeswoman Betsey Blimline.

The agency has narrowed down the applicants to 20, and each will meet the dog in person this evening, Blimline said.

"We always require that a family comes in to meet the dog, but we're handling this in a little bit of a special way because so many people are interested in one dog," Baars said.

A final decision, based on personal interviews, will be made by week's end. And on Monday, Sparky will ride to his new home.

Adopt a Bear






Wanted: House-trained bear needs a BIG new home
Last updated at 23:19pm on 10th November 2007

A tiny endangered bear is being kept as a house pet and has all the creature comforts he needs after he was rescued from callous animal traders.

But two-month-old Koda the Andean bear cub cannot stay playing in armchairs and climbing house-plants for long.

His rescuers, an animal rights organisation, are looking for a permanent home for the cub who could grow up to 6 ft and weigh more than 340lbs.

Unlike another famous bear with a fondness for marmalade sandwiches, Koda prefers strawberry yoghurt and chewing on bamboo.

In the wild Koda would eat fruits, but the bears also eat berries, grasses, bulbs, insects, and small animals such as rodents, rabbits, and birds.

The endangered bear is living in the home of animals rights activists in La Paz, Bolivia, where he climbs on the furniture instead of trees as he would have done in his natural habitat.

The Andean bear, also known as the Spectacled Bear, are recorded as "Vulnerable" on the World Conservation Union's Red List of Threatened Animals.

These endangered animals are known as Spectacled bears due to their distinctive markings

Animal charities are battling to keep the bears in their natural habitat in the Andes range and outlying mountain ranges.

This stretches from western Venezuela south to Bolivia. A few have been reported in eastern Panama and extreme northern Argentina.

Pet Car Insurance

Progressive car insurance adds pet coverage
For no additional charge $500 benefit will be paid if animal is hurt or dies






Capytan, a mixed boxer pit bull hangs his head out a car window as owner Shelly Labovitz watches, in Chagrin Falls, Ohio. Progressive, based near Cleveland in Mayfield village, in September said that in most states, its policies with collision coverage will now cover a customers' dog or cat.

Associated Press

updated 6:13 p.m. ET, Sun., Nov. 11, 2007

CLEVELAND - Progressive Corp. is providing collision coverage for customers' dogs or cats at no additional premium cost. It will pay up to $500 if a customer's dog or cat is hurt or dies in a car accident.

"It's an unusual and interesting benefit," said Jean Salvatore, a senior vice president for the New York-based Insurance Information Institute. She was not aware of any other company offering a collision benefit for pets.

"Auto insurance is a very competitive market, and companies are always looking for ways to differentiate themselves. If this becomes popular, I'm sure others may look into it as well," Salvatore said.
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There are over 150 million pets in the U.S., and Americans spend over $40 billion on their pets annually, according to a recent Insurance Information Institute study.

The Progressive benefit has been in place since Sept. 6, and it's still too soon to determine if the company's undetermined cost of offering it will be offset by better sales, Progressive spokeswoman Leah Knapp said.

Auto insurance generally provides property, liability and medical coverage.

Typically, an insured person's collision coverage pays for the damage to the insured's vehicle in a collision or other kind of accident, such as when a driver loses control and a car overturns. But usually there's no payment for pets who may be in the car.

Liability coverage would kick in for any pets hurt in a car other than the insured's.

The new Progressive benefit is not pet insurance, which some people obtain to help them pay veterinarian costs.

A Progressive strategist said the company saw a pets benefit as an auto insurance market opportunity.

"We found no coverage that was even similar to it," said Geoff Souser, Progressive product manager for auto insurance. "We have pets, too, and we know how important they are to our families. We are always looking for new and different ways of delivering value to our customers, and this seemed like a logical extension."

Progressive is the third-biggest auto insurer, ranking behind State Farm and Allstate and slightly ahead on National Indemnity (Berkshire Hathaway), which includes GEICO.

State Farm and Allstate confirmed a pets benefit is not in the collision part of their policies. A message was left with a GEICO spokeswoman.

Progressive's pet benefit is available in 46 states and the District of Columbia; it's not yet available in North Carolina, New Hampshire, New York and Virginia, but the company hopes to offer it in those states soon.

Furry Convention




Reported by Janice Broach
Action News 5 Special Report: Fur Fetish

Updated: Nov 10, 2007 01:04 AM

This past Labor Day weekend, a Holiday Inn in Memphis turned into a Holiday "Den" for hundreds of people whose interest in dressing up like animals went far beyond the musical "Cats".

They're called Furries, Furry Fans, or simply Furs. Each has their own "fursona," or furry alter ego.

The 11th Annual Memphis Furry Convention is one of the largest...with furries on the prowl from across the country.

"We average between six and seven hundred people ever year," said participant Christopher "Tyger" Roth.

They love "living" like an animal, or at least dressing up like one. Furries occasionally stroke each other, and there are even fur piles, including one at a dance.

Some furries even bring their children to fur-meets.

"I just want them to see the things their father is interested in," said one furry identified as "Growl Tiger."

Most furries are men. There are very few women in the fandom, though our cameras did catch a few. Each animal represents a different aspect of the furry culture.

"Power animals are a large part of how furries actually think about things," said participant Christopher "Tilt" Williams.

For that reason, it is common to seen big animals including foxes, big cats, and wolves.

So what do participants get out of it?

"You can be and do things that you can't normally do," said one participant. "(You get) a little bit more freedom."

"I can do things I wouldn't normally do, like poke people, and tickle them and stuff," another participant said.

For some furries, that "stuff" involves sex. At the convention in Memphis, furries attended late night classes on "safer sex" and adult websites.

A 'Code of Conduct' posted online said "Backscratches and hugging" were acceptable, but passionate kissing, "tongue battles," and fondling were not.

The furries in Memphis were told to "take it to their room" if they had to think twice about doing something in public.

"We have gotten our share of bad publicity, and as the old saying goes, 'sex sells,' and that's what a lot of the media has portrayed us," one participant said. "But we are proud of the good things we have been able to accomplish, like working with various charities."

Whether it's fun or a fetish behind the animal urges, the furries in Memphis said they were just normal people having a good time.

"There's nothing outstanding about us, especially me," one participant said. "I'm just a big goofy looking guy."

The Memphis meeting has raised thousands of dollars for charity. Many of the furries in Memphis enjoyed video games, art, and athletics, with one group of people playing a game of volleyball in full costume.

Turkey's Revenge




Turkey truck rollover closes highway ramp

A semitrailer truck hauling turkeys rolled over in Mounds View early this morning blocking the ramp from eastbound Hwy. 10 to southbound Interstate Hwy. 35W.

By Tim Harlow, Star Tribune

Last update: November 12, 2007 – 8:34 AM

A semitrailer truck hauling turkeys rolled over in Mounds View early this morning blocking the ramp from eastbound Hwy. 10 to southbound Interstate Hwy. 35W.

Traffic in the area is heavy, especially on eastbound Hwy. 10 where backups to Hwy. 65 are being reported, said Jake Martin of the Regional Transportation Management Center.

Southbound Interstate Hwy. 35W is backed up from Hwy. 10 to Lexington Avenue in Circle Pines, Martin said.

Crews are on the scene cleaning up the accident, which happened about 1:10 a.m. Martin said the ramp will likely be closed for "quite some time." As of 8:30 a.m., the cleanup was continuing.

Elsewhere on the system, traffic is moving swiftly and levels are a tad lighter due to the observance of the Veteran's Day holiday.

Tim Harlow • harlow@startribune.com

I Said You've Got to Clone the Monkey


Independent.co.uk Online Edition: Home

12 November 2007 09:32

Cloning: a giant step

For the first time, scientists have created dozens of cloned embryos from adult primates. But what are the implications of this technical breakthrough for the future of mankind?

By Steve Connor, Science Editor
Published: 12 November 2007

A technical breakthrough has enabled scientists to create for the first time dozens of cloned embryos from adult monkeys, raising the prospect of the same procedure being used to make cloned human embryos.

Attempts to clone human embryos for research have been dogged by technical problems and controversies over fraudulent research and questionable ethics. But the new technique promises to revolutionise the efficiency by which scientists can turn human eggs into cloned embryos.

It is the first time that scientists have been able to create viable cloned embryos from an adult primate – in this case a 10-year-old male rhesus macaque monkey – and they are scheduled to report their findings later this month.

The scientists will also demonstrate that they have been able to extract stem cells from some of the cloned embryos and that they have managed to encourage these embryonic cells to develop in the laboratory into mature heart cells and brain neurons.

Scientists who know of the research said it was the breakthrough that they had all been waiting for because, until now, there was a growing feeling that there might be some insuperable barrier to creating cloned embryos from adult primates – including humans.

The development will not be welcomed in all quarters. Opponents of cloning will argue that the new technique of manipulating primate eggs to improve cloning efficiency will lead to increased attempts at creating – and destroying – cloned human embryos for research purposes.

Although it is illegal in Britain to place any such cloned embryos into the womb of a woman, many people also fear that the relative ease of being able to perform cloning using the skin cells of an adult will increase the chances of its being applied to produce a cloned baby. Scientists in South Korea reported in 2004 that they had created the first cloned human embryo but in 2006 their study was retracted after it emerged that its main author, Hwang Woo-suk , had committed fraud.

There has only been one other documented example of a human embryonic clone, but it died after a few days and did not produce stem cells. The work has so far not been replicated.

The scientists who carried out the latest primate work are believed to have tried to implant about 100 cloned embryos into the wombs of around 50 surrogate rhesus macaque mothers but have not yet succeeded with the birth of any cloned offspring.

However, one senior scientist involved in the study said that this may simply be down to bad luck – it took 277 attempts, for instance, to create Dolly the sheep, the first clone of an adult mammal.

The work was led by Shoukhrat Mitalipov, a Russian-born scientist at the Oregon National Primate Research Centre in Beaverton. Dr Mitalipov helped to pioneer a new way of handling primate eggs during the cloning process, which involved fusing each egg with a nucleus taken from a skin cell of an adult primate.

Dr Mitalipov said he was unable to comment on the study until it was published in the journal Nature. But he told colleagues at a scientific meeting this year that he had made two batches of stem cells from 20 cloned embryos and tests had shown they were true clones.

Professor Alan Trounson of Monash University in Australia said Dr Mitalipov's findings represented the long-awaited breakthrough. Despite many attempts, no one had been able to produce cloned primate embryos from adult cells, yet this had been done on dozens of other non-primate species. " This is 'proof of concept' for the primate. It has been thought by some [to be too] difficult in monkeys – and humans – but those of us who work [with] animals such as sheep and cattle thought that success rates would be much like that achieved in these species," Professor Trounson said.

"Mitalipov's data confirms this. They have the skills necessary and we can now move on to consider what might be able to be achieved in humans."

Professor Don Wolf, who led the laboratory at the Oregon National Primate Research Centre before his recent retirement, said the new procedure was based on a microscopic technique that does not use ultraviolet light and dyes, which appear to damage primate eggs.

"In the early days we tried to use that technique in the monkey and unbeknownst to us at the time that was basically damaging the egg. So one of the keys was to remove that step from the process," Dr Wolf said.

"We could now produce cloned blastocysts [embryos] in the monkey at a reasonable frequency, at least a frequency that would allow us ...to study the cloned blastocyst ," Professor Wolf said.

The Oregon team, working with a group in China, has so far produced about 100 cloned embryos that have been transferred into around 50 female macaques, but none has resulted in a full-term pregnancy, he said.

"It's possible that we're still just having bad luck. We're producing may be one in 20 or one in 30 cloned blastocysts that are 'normal' and capable of producing a pregnancy and we just haven't got them into the animal recipient at the right time to allow implantation and pregnancy to occur," Professor Wolf said.

"The focus now is going to be on therapeutic cloning and using the non-human primate as a paradigm for therapeutic cloning for what you might be able to do clinically," he said.

"We're the first to do it, although it's a tainted subject because of the fraudulent research that came out of South Korea. One can never be sure but there may be some validity to what the South Koreans did. But this would now be the first documented therapeutic cloning in a primate," he added.

A brief history of cloning

The monkey-cloning technique is the same basic procedure that resulted in Dolly the sheep. The nucleus of a healthy, unfertilised egg is removed and another nucleus from the mature skin cell of an adult animal is placed inside the egg. With careful timing and the use of electrical pulses, an embryo can be created which is a genetic clone of the skin tissue donor. It is possible to implant embryos created in this way into the womb to produce cloned animals. This so-called 'reproductive cloning' of humans is illegal in Britain and many other countries. However it has been applied to a range of animal species, including:

* Cow: Many domestic cattle have been successfully cloned. First attempt to clone an endangered species was Noah, a rare gaur ox, which was cloned in the US in 2001 but died 48 hours after birth

* Mouse: Cumulina was a common brown house mouse, cloned from adult cells at the University of Hawaii in 1997. She survived to adulthood and produced two litters, before dying in May 2000

* Horse: Called Prometea, the first cloned horse, born in Italy in May 2003

* Cat: A kitten called CopyCat was born in 2002 in Texas, and gave birth to three kittens by a natural father in September 2006

* Dog: Snuppy, born in South Korea. Doubts about its authenticity were dispelled by DNA tests. The group has also cloned two wolf cubs, called Snuwolf and Snuwolffy using the same procedure. Cloned Afghan hounds named Bona, Peace and Hope have also been born