Saturday, December 13, 2014
Woman reluctantly agrees to removal of 300 pet rats that run freely around her home
A Florida woman's home is inundated with hundreds of pet rats scurrying around.
They're living in the walls and chewing through the furniture, and homeowner Florine Brown, 29, is reluctant to let them go.
Inside Brown's St. Petersburg home, holes are in the furniture and a foul odour fills the air.
‘They have taken over. They're in every room pretty much around the house. They're in the kitchen, they're in the stairs, they're in my room,” said Brown. "It got really out of control, but I still wanted to keep them."
The rats are hiding in cabinets, scurrying under chairs and even poking their heads under stove burners. Brown loves these rodents. She started with three back in 2012, but they escaped and multiplied. Now there are around 300. Brown reasoned, "I didn't think of it as a big deal or a problem. I still don't, but it really got out of hand." A family member called local animal rescue groups. SPCA Tampa Bay, The Humane Society of Pinellas County, and the ASPCA are helping out.
Over the next few weeks, members from the agencies will safely remove the rats and take them to new homes. It's a slow process since there are so many rats, so officials say it may take around a month to complete. The rats are being captured alive and new homes must be found for them. Neighbours had tried to warn Brown to stop the rodents from mating. Already about 70 rats have been removed in the past few days, but there's a lot more work to do. "I love [the rats.] I have deep compassion for them," said Brown.
YouTube link. Additional news video.
"I just want them to go to good homes." Florine developed a close attachment to these rats after her grandparents died recently. “I lost my job and I was very depressed, and I wasn't working at the time, so I really depended on the rats a lot to get me by,” she said. She went through a bout of depression and she used them as a coping mechanism. But now the problem has got out of control, so the rats have got to go. An SPCA spokesperson says if you know someone who is hoarding animals, it's important to call animal rescue groups.
The rats are hiding in cabinets, scurrying under chairs and even poking their heads under stove burners. Brown loves these rodents. She started with three back in 2012, but they escaped and multiplied. Now there are around 300. Brown reasoned, "I didn't think of it as a big deal or a problem. I still don't, but it really got out of hand." A family member called local animal rescue groups. SPCA Tampa Bay, The Humane Society of Pinellas County, and the ASPCA are helping out.
Over the next few weeks, members from the agencies will safely remove the rats and take them to new homes. It's a slow process since there are so many rats, so officials say it may take around a month to complete. The rats are being captured alive and new homes must be found for them. Neighbours had tried to warn Brown to stop the rodents from mating. Already about 70 rats have been removed in the past few days, but there's a lot more work to do. "I love [the rats.] I have deep compassion for them," said Brown.
YouTube link. Additional news video.
"I just want them to go to good homes." Florine developed a close attachment to these rats after her grandparents died recently. “I lost my job and I was very depressed, and I wasn't working at the time, so I really depended on the rats a lot to get me by,” she said. She went through a bout of depression and she used them as a coping mechanism. But now the problem has got out of control, so the rats have got to go. An SPCA spokesperson says if you know someone who is hoarding animals, it's important to call animal rescue groups.
Dog missing for three and a half years reunited with family
The Martinez family from Omaha, Nebraska, don't know where Sarge the German shorthaired pointer has been for the last three and a half years. At the moment, they don't care.
"I remember him playing with the kids, I remember him laying on their beds with them. You know I remember the day we got him." Harvey Martinez is still shocked Sarge somehow, found his way back home."It's something, we never thought we'd ever thought possible.
"We never thought we'd ever see him again." Sarge took off from home one day when the family lived in Plattsmouth, years ago. Harvey says his family searched for eight months with fliers and Craiglist posts. Sarge never turned up.
YouTube link.
"I never kept a dog afterwards because there's no dog that could ever replace him." It turns out, Harvey didn't have to. He recently saw a Facebook post from the Plattsmouth Animal Shelter about a stray dog. It was Sarge. "It's kind of like a giant Christmas present, for Christmas. It's still shocking to me," says Martinez.
"I remember him playing with the kids, I remember him laying on their beds with them. You know I remember the day we got him." Harvey Martinez is still shocked Sarge somehow, found his way back home."It's something, we never thought we'd ever thought possible.
"We never thought we'd ever see him again." Sarge took off from home one day when the family lived in Plattsmouth, years ago. Harvey says his family searched for eight months with fliers and Craiglist posts. Sarge never turned up.
YouTube link.
"I never kept a dog afterwards because there's no dog that could ever replace him." It turns out, Harvey didn't have to. He recently saw a Facebook post from the Plattsmouth Animal Shelter about a stray dog. It was Sarge. "It's kind of like a giant Christmas present, for Christmas. It's still shocking to me," says Martinez.
Stray cat enjoyed $1,000 airport fish feast
A stray ginger cat sneaked into a seafood store at Vladivostok airport in eastern Russia and treated itself to fish from the deli counter. The animal's feast, which included squid and flatfish, was worth 60,000 roubles (£660, $1,000).
The feline burglar also went for the dried octopus - he tore up the packaging, but couldn't quite get to the food inside. The shop owners still had to count the cost because the packages were broken open.
The shop was forced to write off the entire fish counter the cat had laid its paws on, to comply with sanitary rules. The store was thoroughly disinfected afterwards, its owners have promised.
YouTube link.
The cat's feast was spotted and filmed by airport staff, who were amused by the gluttonous animal for some time before calling the shop owners. It's unknown how the cat managed to get into the store, although according to airport staff it's a local stray and sometimes wanders into the airport.
The feline burglar also went for the dried octopus - he tore up the packaging, but couldn't quite get to the food inside. The shop owners still had to count the cost because the packages were broken open.
The shop was forced to write off the entire fish counter the cat had laid its paws on, to comply with sanitary rules. The store was thoroughly disinfected afterwards, its owners have promised.
YouTube link.
The cat's feast was spotted and filmed by airport staff, who were amused by the gluttonous animal for some time before calling the shop owners. It's unknown how the cat managed to get into the store, although according to airport staff it's a local stray and sometimes wanders into the airport.
Father fined after three-year-old boy crashed his car into bus shelter
A father been ordered to pay 8,000 kronor (£650, $1,000) after his three-year-old son managed to hijack his car and drive into a bus shelter in central Gävle, Sweden.
The father was told to pay the 8,000 kronor for putting other people's lives in danger.
The incident occurred in mid-September, when the father briefly left the child unattended in the car.
The boy then managed to turn the ignition key and rammed the vehicle into a bus shelter. Two people sitting at the shelter and the three-year-old driver were all unhurt.
The father was told to pay the 8,000 kronor for putting other people's lives in danger.
The incident occurred in mid-September, when the father briefly left the child unattended in the car.
The boy then managed to turn the ignition key and rammed the vehicle into a bus shelter. Two people sitting at the shelter and the three-year-old driver were all unhurt.
Preschool blames hand sanitiser for 4-year-old girl's drunkenness
The owner of an early childhood centre in Invercargill, New Zealand, where a 4-year-old girl became grossly intoxicated says the girl consumed alcohol-based hand sanitiser and the centre would not be using the product again.
Jackie Woodward, owner of the Woodhouse Early Learning Centre, has spoken of the "horrific" few days she and her staff have endured after the girl was hospitalised in a drunken stupor shortly after leaving the premises.
The girl was picked up by her mother, Terri Hawke, from the centre at 5.30pm on Monday. But the mother soon became alarmed at her behaviour and rushed her to hospital, where she collapsed into a nurse's arms and was later diagnosed as being intoxicated. Her alcohol reading was 188mg, nearly four times over the legal driving limit. Woodward said they believed the girl had climbed onto a bookshelf and reached the hand sanitiser connected to the wall above while the on-duty staff member was putting on a load of washing in another room.
There was "no liquor anywhere in the centre at all" that the child could have got access to, she said. The mother has criticised Woodward's staff for failing to pick up that her daughter was drunk. Woodward said the only sign the girl was not acting normally was when she stumbled at about 5.15pm, but she put it down to the soles falling off her sandals. Woodward, who has removed the hand sanitiser from its position and put it in a locked room, said she would not be using the product again, instead sourcing non-alcoholic hand cleaning products.
"I had no idea it was 60 to 70 per cent alcohol content." She was relieved the child was okay. "That's the main thing for us." Doug Sellman, director of the National Addictions Centre University of Otago, Christchurch, said an average-sized 4-year-old girl would need about 40ml, or eight teaspoons, of hand sanitiser to reach a 188mg level. If she had drunk wine she would have needed one glass to reach the 188mg level, and 1.5 small cans of beer would have been sufficient.
The girl was picked up by her mother, Terri Hawke, from the centre at 5.30pm on Monday. But the mother soon became alarmed at her behaviour and rushed her to hospital, where she collapsed into a nurse's arms and was later diagnosed as being intoxicated. Her alcohol reading was 188mg, nearly four times over the legal driving limit. Woodward said they believed the girl had climbed onto a bookshelf and reached the hand sanitiser connected to the wall above while the on-duty staff member was putting on a load of washing in another room.
There was "no liquor anywhere in the centre at all" that the child could have got access to, she said. The mother has criticised Woodward's staff for failing to pick up that her daughter was drunk. Woodward said the only sign the girl was not acting normally was when she stumbled at about 5.15pm, but she put it down to the soles falling off her sandals. Woodward, who has removed the hand sanitiser from its position and put it in a locked room, said she would not be using the product again, instead sourcing non-alcoholic hand cleaning products.
"I had no idea it was 60 to 70 per cent alcohol content." She was relieved the child was okay. "That's the main thing for us." Doug Sellman, director of the National Addictions Centre University of Otago, Christchurch, said an average-sized 4-year-old girl would need about 40ml, or eight teaspoons, of hand sanitiser to reach a 188mg level. If she had drunk wine she would have needed one glass to reach the 188mg level, and 1.5 small cans of beer would have been sufficient.
Woman convicted of sexual assault on two plumbers
A court in France this week handed out a 12-month suspended prison sentence to a woman who sexually assaulted two plumbers, who came to repair the central heating in her house.
The court in the northern town of Arras heard how the woman tried to entice the men into her bed and began groping one of the workmen when he was bent over working.
“When you have done with the radiators, come to my bed,” the woman, identified only as I.D., told one of the two workers in October last year. When one plumber was bending over to do some work, the woman approached him from behind and began caressing his back and other parts of his body. He spurned her advances.
She then closed the shutters of the apartment and began making ever more obscene propositions. When the plumbers again declined, she smacked one of them across the ear before throwing them out of her home and refusing to let them take their plumbing equipment with them.
When the police came the next day to recover the tools, the accused again lashed out, this time hitting the caretaker of the building. The woman told the court that she realised that “my behaviour was not normal that day with the workers”. She said that after the incident she had “fallen even deeper into alcoholism” but in recent months had managed to stop drinking and was now training to be a care worker. The court gave her a 12-month suspended prison sentence and ordered her to pay €1,000 in damages to the pair of plumbers.
“When you have done with the radiators, come to my bed,” the woman, identified only as I.D., told one of the two workers in October last year. When one plumber was bending over to do some work, the woman approached him from behind and began caressing his back and other parts of his body. He spurned her advances.
She then closed the shutters of the apartment and began making ever more obscene propositions. When the plumbers again declined, she smacked one of them across the ear before throwing them out of her home and refusing to let them take their plumbing equipment with them.
When the police came the next day to recover the tools, the accused again lashed out, this time hitting the caretaker of the building. The woman told the court that she realised that “my behaviour was not normal that day with the workers”. She said that after the incident she had “fallen even deeper into alcoholism” but in recent months had managed to stop drinking and was now training to be a care worker. The court gave her a 12-month suspended prison sentence and ordered her to pay €1,000 in damages to the pair of plumbers.
Rejected Romeo ejected from woman's bedroom by her sword-wielding flatmate
A rejected Romeo was ejected from a woman’s bedroom at sword point after a date went wrong, a court heard on Wednesday.
Stephen Cochrane, 33, had gone back to Celine Reilly’s flat on what was only their second date. Stirling Sheriff Court was told that the couple, who had earlier been having a drink and listening to music, retired to Miss Reilly’s bedroom around 11pm.
Miss Reilly’s flatmates, one of them a female fencer, also went to their rooms. A short time later a disturbance broke out in Miss Reilly’s bedroom. David McDonald, prosecuting, said: “An argument ensued during which Mr Cochrane called her a slapper and a bitch.
“Her flatmates heard shouting, and both entered Miss Reilly’s bedroom and saw Mr Cochrane in the corner putting his clothes back on. He was asked to leave, but was shouting and arguing back. Miss Reilly left the room and called the police, and something of a struggle ensued between Miss Reilly’s flatmates and the accused, during which he was shouting and swearing and saying he didn’t have his jacket.” When finally outside, he was heard to shout “old boot” at one of Miss Reilly’s flatmates before making off. Police later attended and found Miss Reilly to be “highly upset and tearful”.
Harry Couchlin, defending, said the incident was “a date gone wrong”, which had got even worse when the rapier was produced. He claimed Cochrane had sustained small “sabre scratches”. Mr Couchlin said: “One of Miss Reilly’s flatmates, who has a sporting interest, had in her possession a fencing sabre, which would have upped the ante. Mr Cochrane was scratched on the body in the end - I’m not sure how. One of the witnesses also indicated that the lady with the sabre had thrown Mr Cochrane’s jacket into the common close, perhaps to encourage him to leave.”
He added: “It was only the second time Mr Cochrane and Miss Reilly’d had some sort of date. It was a date that went somewhat wrong. Mr Cochrane, and only Mr Cochrane, suffered any physical injury.” Cochrane, of Stirling, pleaded guilty to shouting and swearing, uttering threats, and refusing to leave Miss Reilly’s flat, also in Stirling, when requested. The incident happened on 8 September 2014. Sheriff Peter Anderson deferred sentence and refused a Crown application for an anti-harassment order, saying it was unnecessary. He said: “Whilst Mr Cochrane’s conduct is to be roundly condemned as being bullying and unpleasant, I’d suggest Mr Cochrane and Miss Reilly are not going to see each other ever again.”
“Her flatmates heard shouting, and both entered Miss Reilly’s bedroom and saw Mr Cochrane in the corner putting his clothes back on. He was asked to leave, but was shouting and arguing back. Miss Reilly left the room and called the police, and something of a struggle ensued between Miss Reilly’s flatmates and the accused, during which he was shouting and swearing and saying he didn’t have his jacket.” When finally outside, he was heard to shout “old boot” at one of Miss Reilly’s flatmates before making off. Police later attended and found Miss Reilly to be “highly upset and tearful”.
Harry Couchlin, defending, said the incident was “a date gone wrong”, which had got even worse when the rapier was produced. He claimed Cochrane had sustained small “sabre scratches”. Mr Couchlin said: “One of Miss Reilly’s flatmates, who has a sporting interest, had in her possession a fencing sabre, which would have upped the ante. Mr Cochrane was scratched on the body in the end - I’m not sure how. One of the witnesses also indicated that the lady with the sabre had thrown Mr Cochrane’s jacket into the common close, perhaps to encourage him to leave.”
He added: “It was only the second time Mr Cochrane and Miss Reilly’d had some sort of date. It was a date that went somewhat wrong. Mr Cochrane, and only Mr Cochrane, suffered any physical injury.” Cochrane, of Stirling, pleaded guilty to shouting and swearing, uttering threats, and refusing to leave Miss Reilly’s flat, also in Stirling, when requested. The incident happened on 8 September 2014. Sheriff Peter Anderson deferred sentence and refused a Crown application for an anti-harassment order, saying it was unnecessary. He said: “Whilst Mr Cochrane’s conduct is to be roundly condemned as being bullying and unpleasant, I’d suggest Mr Cochrane and Miss Reilly are not going to see each other ever again.”
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