Wednesday, May 27, 2015
Man who took cat canoeing drowned trying to save it after it jumped overboard
A 46-year-old man died while canoeing in Loon Lake in the northern suburbs of Illinois on Monday after he jumped in the water to try and save a cat.
Officials with the Lake County Sheriff's office were called to the scene in Antioch a little after 7:30pm. The man was in a canoe with another man and woman on Loon Lake when the cat, also in the canoe, jumped into the water, police said.
The man tried to save the cat but went under the water, according to authorities. His body was recovered shortly after midnight. The identification of the man, who police say is from Ingleside, has not yet been released.
Police said alcohol is believed to have been a factor in the incident. The Illinois Department of Natural Resources is investigating the death. It is not known what happened to the cat.
Officials with the Lake County Sheriff's office were called to the scene in Antioch a little after 7:30pm. The man was in a canoe with another man and woman on Loon Lake when the cat, also in the canoe, jumped into the water, police said.
The man tried to save the cat but went under the water, according to authorities. His body was recovered shortly after midnight. The identification of the man, who police say is from Ingleside, has not yet been released.
Police said alcohol is believed to have been a factor in the incident. The Illinois Department of Natural Resources is investigating the death. It is not known what happened to the cat.
Hungry bear scaled power transmission tower to raid raven's nest
A group of bison hunters visiting Wood Buffalo National Park in north eastern Alberta, Canada, watched a bear climb a power transmission tower and raid a ravens' nest earlier this month.
Linda Powell of Greensboro, North Carolina, shot the photos and video on May 10.
"We were in a clearcut, where there were actually power lines and towers and I had noticed earlier there were nests at the top of them. I was sitting there and glanced over and happened to see a black bear on its hind legs at the base of the tower and my first thought that went through my mind was: that bear's gonna climb the tower but I didn't really think that it would."
She says everyone in her party was so shocked at first, they didn't grab their cameras until the bear was near the top of the tower. "Over the next few minutes we watched him very skillfully climb the tower while the ravens were diving at him pecking at him, squawking, trying to do everything they could to discourage him, and he just climbed right to the top." Powell is the director of media relations for O.F. Mossburg and Sons, a U.S. company that makes firearms.
YouTube link.
She had brought two hunters with decades of experience to the area to field test some of the company's hunting guns. "None of us had ever seen anything like that in all of our years or our time out in the field hunting," she says. After raiding the nest for eggs, the bear struggled a little on the descent but made it down safely, she says. Later, the ravens just sat by the nest "almost like they were in mourning." Other than the great bear story, she says the group didn't have much luck hunting.
"We were in a clearcut, where there were actually power lines and towers and I had noticed earlier there were nests at the top of them. I was sitting there and glanced over and happened to see a black bear on its hind legs at the base of the tower and my first thought that went through my mind was: that bear's gonna climb the tower but I didn't really think that it would."
She says everyone in her party was so shocked at first, they didn't grab their cameras until the bear was near the top of the tower. "Over the next few minutes we watched him very skillfully climb the tower while the ravens were diving at him pecking at him, squawking, trying to do everything they could to discourage him, and he just climbed right to the top." Powell is the director of media relations for O.F. Mossburg and Sons, a U.S. company that makes firearms.
YouTube link.
She had brought two hunters with decades of experience to the area to field test some of the company's hunting guns. "None of us had ever seen anything like that in all of our years or our time out in the field hunting," she says. After raiding the nest for eggs, the bear struggled a little on the descent but made it down safely, she says. Later, the ravens just sat by the nest "almost like they were in mourning." Other than the great bear story, she says the group didn't have much luck hunting.
Wandering seal that relaxed on man's driveway visited car wash overnight - Update
A gathering crowd applauded as a seal was herded into a cage after coming ashore for the second day in a row.
The seal spent Monday morning wandering about the New Zealand suburb of Papakura, before emergency services guided it towards an estuary.
It was loaded onto a Department of Conservation (DOC) vehicle and taken away from its south Auckland sleeping spot on Tuesday afternoon. Auckland Zoo head vet James Chatterton described the seal as being "calm and gentle". The seal was found asleep in a car wash building in Papakura on Tuesday morning.
YouTube link.
Police came across the seal at a road intersection in the suburb at about 2am, Inspector Chris Money said. The seal then made its way into the car park of a nearby medical clinic. From there it entered the Uwash car wash building, where it fell fast asleep. It woke up at around midday, and waved a flipper at the crowd of about 50 people who were watching.
The increased activity prompted DOC staff to move people further away from the lost mammal. The large fur seal's city excursion ended when he was coaxed into a crate. He was then loaded into a vehicle and was driven to Karioitahi Beach, southwest of Auckland, where he was released by Department of Conservation and Auckland Zoo staff.
It was loaded onto a Department of Conservation (DOC) vehicle and taken away from its south Auckland sleeping spot on Tuesday afternoon. Auckland Zoo head vet James Chatterton described the seal as being "calm and gentle". The seal was found asleep in a car wash building in Papakura on Tuesday morning.
YouTube link.
Police came across the seal at a road intersection in the suburb at about 2am, Inspector Chris Money said. The seal then made its way into the car park of a nearby medical clinic. From there it entered the Uwash car wash building, where it fell fast asleep. It woke up at around midday, and waved a flipper at the crowd of about 50 people who were watching.
The increased activity prompted DOC staff to move people further away from the lost mammal. The large fur seal's city excursion ended when he was coaxed into a crate. He was then loaded into a vehicle and was driven to Karioitahi Beach, southwest of Auckland, where he was released by Department of Conservation and Auckland Zoo staff.
Farmer spells out drought frustration with sheep
The mood is low in drought-ravaged North Canterbury, New Zealand, so one farmer has recruited his sheep to motivate a struggling community.
Parnassus sheep farmer Mike Bowler has been hit hard by the drought, which has crippled farming operations in the area.
The harsh conditions have scorched his fields, requiring Bowler to drop thousands of dollars of feed each day for his stock.
To vent his frustration, each day he scatters the feed into a different pattern, manipulating his sheep into a giant roadside billboard. One day it was the shape of a kiwi; other days it has been the names of his grandchildren. Bowler's most popular design expressed in simple terms what many of his fellow farmers are thinking – "bugger".
His sheep art had been a useful way for dealing with his frustration, he said. "I feel that if I'm pouring that much money into the ground I might as well get some benefit from it, even if it is just a smile from somebody going along the road." He does not hang around to see the reaction to his art but has spotted a few drivers slamming the brakes to jump out and take photos.
The drought had been tough, he said. In a usual year, he would go through 10 tonnes of grain; this year, he has already gone through 120 tonnes. About 10 millimetres of rain fell on Sunday night, the first double digit rainfall since December, but frosts meant it was too late for any recovery. Bowler planned keep his chin up and let his sheep do the talking. "If you've got stock, you've gotta feed 'em, simple as that. It's definitely hard . . . It's the same old thing every day but we'll get there."
To vent his frustration, each day he scatters the feed into a different pattern, manipulating his sheep into a giant roadside billboard. One day it was the shape of a kiwi; other days it has been the names of his grandchildren. Bowler's most popular design expressed in simple terms what many of his fellow farmers are thinking – "bugger".
His sheep art had been a useful way for dealing with his frustration, he said. "I feel that if I'm pouring that much money into the ground I might as well get some benefit from it, even if it is just a smile from somebody going along the road." He does not hang around to see the reaction to his art but has spotted a few drivers slamming the brakes to jump out and take photos.
The drought had been tough, he said. In a usual year, he would go through 10 tonnes of grain; this year, he has already gone through 120 tonnes. About 10 millimetres of rain fell on Sunday night, the first double digit rainfall since December, but frosts meant it was too late for any recovery. Bowler planned keep his chin up and let his sheep do the talking. "If you've got stock, you've gotta feed 'em, simple as that. It's definitely hard . . . It's the same old thing every day but we'll get there."
Controversy after baby rabbit beaten to death with bicycle pump during live radio show
A radio presenter in Denmark has killed a baby rabbit live on air, provoking listeners to campaign for a boycott.
The Radio24syv presenter was hosting a debate on animal welfare and said he carried out the killing to demonstrate the hypocrisy of animal campaigners who eat meat from supermarkets. Alan, a nine-week-old rabbit, was hit three times over the head with a bicycle pump by Asger Juhl. The rabbit apparently twitched several times before quietly dying.
Mr Juhl said he wanted to see whether he had become so attached to the rabbit by the end of the debate that he wouldn't be able to kill him. Linse Kessler, an activist who had been part of an earlier discussion, talked her way back into the studio to try to save Alan. She chased Mr Juhl around a table but did not manage to rescue the rabbit.
He has since taken the animal's carcass home and skinned it with his children who are aged six and eight. They are planning a dinner of rabbit ragout. Since the broadcast there has been an angry protest, with people calling for a boycott of the radio station and describing the presenter's behaviour as disgusting.
The Radio24syv presenter was hosting a debate on animal welfare and said he carried out the killing to demonstrate the hypocrisy of animal campaigners who eat meat from supermarkets. Alan, a nine-week-old rabbit, was hit three times over the head with a bicycle pump by Asger Juhl. The rabbit apparently twitched several times before quietly dying.
Mr Juhl said he wanted to see whether he had become so attached to the rabbit by the end of the debate that he wouldn't be able to kill him. Linse Kessler, an activist who had been part of an earlier discussion, talked her way back into the studio to try to save Alan. She chased Mr Juhl around a table but did not manage to rescue the rabbit.
He has since taken the animal's carcass home and skinned it with his children who are aged six and eight. They are planning a dinner of rabbit ragout. Since the broadcast there has been an angry protest, with people calling for a boycott of the radio station and describing the presenter's behaviour as disgusting.
Mural's 'rude bits' censored with planks of wood
A mural by a celebrated artist has been censored by its owner who has covered up the 'naughty bits' with a plank of wood.
Robert Oscar Lenkiewicz painted a couple having sex on the side of a shopping arcade in Plymouth Harbour's Barbican building more than 30 years ago.
The unfinished work was created on the concrete but never completed when surrounding businesses got fed up of the scaffolding and the time the work was taking.
A different work by the artist, called The Last Judgement, was painted on wooden boards and fixed over it instead. The mural, which was never seen due to tarpaulin around the wall when it was painted, was revealed for the first time last November when the boards were taken down for preservation. But now the building owner Adele Nash has covered up the 'rude' parts by fixing bits of wood across the painting, which was originally commissioned by her late husband. Adele said "freedom of artist's expression" did not mean the recently-discovered mural was "an appropriate image to have in the public domain".
She added: "We were very surprised to see so little had been accomplished during the six months Robert worked on the scaffold back in 1982. We are also somewhat perplexed at realising this fait accompli did not fall into any category of the commission remit given to Robert." The plank of wood is from the original batons which held The Last Judgment over the mural on the side of independent shopping centre The House That Jack Built. But Rob Ferguson, who owns the nearby Barbican Reach Guest House, said the cover-up was "a clear act of vandalism".
He said: "I can understand that a few people may find part of it offensive; I can also appreciate that a temporary covering could have been put up until a decision is made as to its future. What I am incensed about is that a series of holes have been drilled across the middle of a unique piece of work by one of Plymouth's most renowned artists." London-born Lenkiewicz, who died aged 61 in August 2002, was a celebrated artist in South West England who produced up to 10,000 works. Many were on a large scale and explored difficult social themes such as vagrancy, suicide and mental health.
A different work by the artist, called The Last Judgement, was painted on wooden boards and fixed over it instead. The mural, which was never seen due to tarpaulin around the wall when it was painted, was revealed for the first time last November when the boards were taken down for preservation. But now the building owner Adele Nash has covered up the 'rude' parts by fixing bits of wood across the painting, which was originally commissioned by her late husband. Adele said "freedom of artist's expression" did not mean the recently-discovered mural was "an appropriate image to have in the public domain".
She added: "We were very surprised to see so little had been accomplished during the six months Robert worked on the scaffold back in 1982. We are also somewhat perplexed at realising this fait accompli did not fall into any category of the commission remit given to Robert." The plank of wood is from the original batons which held The Last Judgment over the mural on the side of independent shopping centre The House That Jack Built. But Rob Ferguson, who owns the nearby Barbican Reach Guest House, said the cover-up was "a clear act of vandalism".
He said: "I can understand that a few people may find part of it offensive; I can also appreciate that a temporary covering could have been put up until a decision is made as to its future. What I am incensed about is that a series of holes have been drilled across the middle of a unique piece of work by one of Plymouth's most renowned artists." London-born Lenkiewicz, who died aged 61 in August 2002, was a celebrated artist in South West England who produced up to 10,000 works. Many were on a large scale and explored difficult social themes such as vagrancy, suicide and mental health.
Dog used trampoline to jump fence and follow owner to work
A dog surprised its owner on a train after escaping from its garden by using a trampoline to bounce over a 6ft fence.
Thomas McCormack, 34, was left puzzled when his pooch Paddy unexpectedly followed him on his morning commute to work.
The male labrador collie cross had traced him to a railway station before boarding the same carriage and jumping in a seat beside him.
Thomas couldn’t make sense of how his canine friend had escaped its fenced garden kennel or how it managed track him down on Friday morning.
But neighbours revealed they had seen Paddy bouncing on the trampoline and jumping over the fence after Thomas left the house. Thomas from Croy, North Lanarkshire, said he was left with no choice but to take the dog into work for the day. He said: “I was just on my way to work and went to the train station. I jumped on the train and the next thing I know Paddy comes in and sits on the seat next to me. I was shocked. He just looked at me as if he was saying ‘Where are you going?’
“I was confused, but laughing. The neighbour told me he was bouncing on the trampoline and came flying over the fence. That’s how he got out. He is some dog. He obviously followed my scent all the way to the station and jumped in the seat next to me. It’s the only explanation I have.” Paddy is usually kept in the house and stays in the back garden when his owner leaves for work around 8am. But Thomas was baffled when his dog began waiting outside the family’s front door on his return from work in recent days.
YouTube link.
The mystery was only solved when neighbours revealed they had seen Paddy jumping on the trampoline and bouncing over the fence. Thomas said: “I’ve been coming home from work and he was sitting outside the front door. He’s sitting there and I was thinking ‘How did he get over there?’ He was in a kennel in my back garden and the fence is six feet, so he can’t jump it. But he’s bouncing on the trampoline with the kids all the time, that’s where he must have learnt it. He’s a clever dog. I think he’s been following me to work. My guess is that he’s made the journey a few times, but never managed to find me until the other day. That morning he obviously caught me. I had to take him to work.”
But neighbours revealed they had seen Paddy bouncing on the trampoline and jumping over the fence after Thomas left the house. Thomas from Croy, North Lanarkshire, said he was left with no choice but to take the dog into work for the day. He said: “I was just on my way to work and went to the train station. I jumped on the train and the next thing I know Paddy comes in and sits on the seat next to me. I was shocked. He just looked at me as if he was saying ‘Where are you going?’
“I was confused, but laughing. The neighbour told me he was bouncing on the trampoline and came flying over the fence. That’s how he got out. He is some dog. He obviously followed my scent all the way to the station and jumped in the seat next to me. It’s the only explanation I have.” Paddy is usually kept in the house and stays in the back garden when his owner leaves for work around 8am. But Thomas was baffled when his dog began waiting outside the family’s front door on his return from work in recent days.
YouTube link.
The mystery was only solved when neighbours revealed they had seen Paddy jumping on the trampoline and bouncing over the fence. Thomas said: “I’ve been coming home from work and he was sitting outside the front door. He’s sitting there and I was thinking ‘How did he get over there?’ He was in a kennel in my back garden and the fence is six feet, so he can’t jump it. But he’s bouncing on the trampoline with the kids all the time, that’s where he must have learnt it. He’s a clever dog. I think he’s been following me to work. My guess is that he’s made the journey a few times, but never managed to find me until the other day. That morning he obviously caught me. I had to take him to work.”
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