Free Republic

Young dogs today, they’re so lazy. It seems to me they only want to take the car when it’s time to go somewhere. That’s why I was pleased to see this video of a dalmation taking his bike for a spin. Sure he isn’t very good at it, requiring training wheels, but at least he’s getting his exercise.

It is time, says a U of T biologist, that we began 'to think of humans as part of the natural world' July 13, 2008 Murray Whyte Staff Reporter Consider the Jefferson salamander. About average-finger length, its grey skin mottled with black. Amphibious, spawning in Southern Ontario's quickly vanishing woodland vernal pools. Prognosis: Dying. Now, the urban raccoon. Plump and furry, not so adept at fishing as its rural cousins, perhaps, but expert at garbage-tipping. An adaptable squatter in buildings both abandoned and, as homeowners near High Park well know, occupied. Prognosis: Thriving. The tiny Jefferson, its numbers dwindling to...

Where on this great earth of ours could King Kong’s descendant survive an attack from an army of zoo workers carrying guns and tranquilizing darts? If you said Skull Island you’re right, but you’re also living in a fantasy world. Those living in the real world know the only logical place would be Japan, and sure enough, that’s where this latest ape-human drama played out. (Ichiro the chimp, a 42-year-old resident of Ishikawa Zoo in Japan, managed to escape to the roof in order to cool down during a heatwave. But it took a lot of work from the zoo...

Drunken elk meets sorry end after toddler attack Published: 23 Jul 08 12:10 CET Online: http://www.thelocal.se/13222/ A drunken elk paid dearly after attacking a toddler playing in a sand pit at her home in Kungälv in western Sweden on Monday. * Elk safari Swedish style, with a green conscience (4 Jul 08) * Path clear for world's biggest elk (18 Jun 08) * Swedish cowboy lassoes loose llama (5 Jun 08) Three-year-old Nova was playing in her backyard sandbox when a young elk calf attacked and bit her. "It bit me on the arm," the terrified toddler said to the...

This is an animated video of a dove that we see in most back yards. As a child, I with a slingshot, 22 rifle and 12 gage shot gun, killed many kinds of birds just for sport, to see if I could aim good and bring the little creature to the ground. I didn’t kill for food but in adolescent behavior. It is so cruel and for this reason I created this video to show and teach the cruelty of this kind of behavior.

Already pointed out the need to carry a camera with you at all times to catch amazing pictures. Now, here's one reason to always remember to carry a good videocamera. And survival kits and a GPS and armored suits and canned burgers and infrared goggles or a F-35 helmet. Unlike Lori Mehmen, however, these guys didn't take cover and just kept driving to this huge mother of all dust storms in Australia. Not as dangerous as a tornado, sure, but scary doesn't even start to describe it. WATCH: http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=a94_1216779982

Do you remember your puppy days when you’d lay in a field, look at the sky and use your imagination on the puffs of clouds floating by? Yup, the good old days. These were the times long before you were asked to humiliate yourself by standing on your hind legs just to get a treat. Of course in my cloud observation days, I never really got much further than “Hey, that looks like a ball!” or “Hey, that looks like a chewy!” but no one ever accused me of being creative or bright. Our first entry is this Dachshund running...

An Edmonton pet store is chipping in $700 as a reward to help a woman find her missing cat, which was last seen wearing a pink dress and an ID collar. With the help of the Urban Dog, a store on Whyte Avenue, Kelley Abercrombie is now offering $1,000 in total for information leading to the safe return of her cat Dipity. The grey, spayed female feline was last seen in the parking lot of the Second Cup in South Edmonton Common on June 24. Abercrombie said the kitty, which loves car rides, had squeezed out of her car through...

TALLINN, Estonia — Authorities say a skydiver was killed when she walked into a spinning aircraft propeller at an airfield in Estonia. The incident happened as a group of skydivers were boarding the turboprop plane in the western town of Rapla. Kulli Kivioja of the regional prosecutor's office said the 29-year-old victim died instantly after she was hit by one of the twin-engine aircraft's propellers. Kivioja said Saturday's incident is under investigation.

This is a video of, Old Fashion Revival Singing and Church, with imaginative animation of frogs that have been inspired and singing a short version of the hymns, “Jesus Love Me” and “Revive Us Again”. The instrumental in this video is, “Revive Us Again.

A pair of conjoined barn swallows, attached at the hip by skin and possibly muscle tissue, will be sent to the Smithsonian Institution for study and examination, Arkansas wildlife officials said Friday. If confirmed, officials say it could prove to be an incredibly rare find — a set of conjoined twins among birds. "I can't even say it's one in a million — it's probably more than that," said Karen Rowe, an ornithologist with the Arkansas Game & Fish Commission. "There's just very little to no records of such a thing." The birds, found by a landowner in White County...

State health officials are urging lobster eaters to avoid the greenish innards known as the tomalley because of risks of shellfish poisoning. Health officials for years have advised against eating the tomalley, the lobster liver some regard as a delicacy. The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention reiterated its advisory Friday, however, after some lobster livers tested positive for high levels of toxins caused by large blooms of red tide algae. But health and fisheries officials stress that the advisory applies only to the lobster tomalley, not to the meat. "Lobster meat is very safe to eat," said Dr....

Churches in Soddy-Daisy that plan to perform baptisms at public boat ramps will now have to first contact City Hall. That was the decision of the Soddy-Daisy Commission during its meeting this week. The unanimous decision was made following a report by Commissioner Geno Shipley, who said that on the Fourth of July, a local church held baptism services at a public boat ramp for about 40 people. And while the services were taking place, an individual with a boat to launch became impatient and went ahead and put it in the water. “I think it’s real rude to do...

SOUTHPORT, England — The last time a golfer did what Greg Norman has a chance to do in the British Open, this name was Old Tom and the American Civil War had recently ended. So it is fitting that here in the land where 100-year-old golf courses are regarded as new, Norman is one step from rewriting his own history, and one of golf’s oldest records.

SYDNEY, Australia -- An elderly Australian woman knocked over and savaged by a large kangaroo on her farm was saved when a dog rushed to her aid and chased the animal away, her son said Saturday. Rosemary Neal, from western New South Wales, was attacked by a male kangaroo estimated to be up to two meters (six feet, six inches) tall and weighing 100 kilograms (220 pounds) as she crossed a field to check her horses, her son Darren said. "The kangaroo has just jumped up and launched straight at her. He hit her once and she just dropped and...

The astonishing spectacle of a leopard savaging a crocodile has been captured for the first time on camera. Seven more pics at the link. I figured that posting them all would be a no-no.

Syracuse, IN (AHN) -- Two men and a juvenile have been charged with possessing more than 1,000 marijuana plants with the intent to distribute after more that 5,000 plants were found growing at a Girl Scout camp. Mario Comacho, 44, and Mariano Gonzales, 38, were charged with growing thousands of marijuana plants on land belonging to the Limberlost Girl Scout Council, which runs Camp Ella J. Logan in the area where the plants were discovered by Indiana State Troopers while searching the land by plane. Sherri Weidman, CEO of the Limberlost Council told the Journal-Gazette that the plants were located...

A part-albino Golden Eagle has been found in Southern Colorado and 850KOA has obtained exclusive, copyright photos of the bird just before he was transferred to the Nature and Raptor Center of Pueblo. The male eagle is thin and is being treated for parasites. The eagle's feathers are in such poor condition that it cannot fly. However, Raptor Center Director Diana Miller believes the rare eagle will recover and will be released in the Hoehne area in about three months. The eagle was found in the Pinon Canyon area of Southeastern Colorado by Rancher Tony Hass. His wife, Connie, took...

It’s not bad enough we have to deal with cats, but now we have deal with their fish too? Check out this story from Florida about walking catfish emerging from the gutters into the streets. I can already see what’s going to happen next. There will be fish adoption days at Petsmart, catfish toys taking away valuable shelf space from dog toys at Wal-Mart, and beautiful parks designated for catfish only. The end result will be that Catfish owners will think the moist slab of fish cuddling up with them on the couch is better than a dog. This is...

BRONX (WABC) -- There's a rattlesnake on the loose in the Bronx. Where it came from is still unclear but Miguel Mota of Pelham Parkway knows it's out there because it bit his dog. Mota's beloved dog Stone should make a complete recovery. The 4-year-old pit bull remains sedated and carefully monitored by the doctors and nurses at the NYC Veterinary Specialists in midtown. Dr.s say the bite was most likely on one sides of Stone's body because that's where most of the swelling is. Around 4 p.m. On Tuesday afternoon, Mota brought Stone for a routine walk in a...

PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. -- About 30 fish were spotted "walking" through a Florida neighborhood, shocking homeowners who said they've never seen anything like it. IMAGES: Fish In Florida Neighborhood"I was like, 'No way there's fish in the street,'" homeowner Dianna Fernandez said. "And I kept going further and further and seeing fish everywhere -- in driveways. I've never seen anything like it." The walking catfish were spotted in the road near a Pinellas Park subdivision Tuesday. The fish used their pectoral fins to walk or shuffle around the streets. Video showed the fish moving through the neighborhood. A scientist with...

Obnoxious cats laughed at us when dog leash law fever spread throughout this country’s cities, but now we canines are the ones chuckling as the first kitty leash law shot comes across the bow. If it passes, cats can say goodbye to freelance pooping and hello to being watched while doing their business. (Howard Feiner is so annoyed with the cat droppings in his yard, he has logged the kitties’ leavings and put flags up to mark the spots. He has done this for a couple of reasons. He’s in court with his neighbor...

NANTUCKET (WBZ) ― For the first time in 21 years, a great white shark has washed ashore in Massachusetts. Lisa Capone, a spokesperson for the Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF), confirmed to WBZ Tuesday that a shark that turned up dead on a beach near Sheep Pond Road in Nantucket Monday was a great white. The female shark was about 6-and-a-half feet long and a couple of years old, Capone said. DMF will dissect it Wednesday to determine how the shark died. Last week, a shark sighting was reported off South Beach on Martha's Vineyard, but could not be confirmed....

A koala has cheated death after being hit by a car travelling at 100 kilometres an hour and dragged for 12 kilometres with his head stuck through the car's front grill. The three-year-old male koala was hit by the car on Dayboro Road, north of Brisbane. But the driver was not aware of the unlucky hitchhiker until she stopped 12 kilometres down the road at the Petrie train station. Amazingly, the koala was not badly hurt despite being found dangling from the front of the car with its head and arm wedged through the vehicle's grill. Staff at the Australian...

A startled bear — perhaps hungry for a plasma TV — broke into a Circuit City store in Colorado Springs this morning. "It's been pretty jumping this morning," ... The ursine intruder shattered a glass sliding door to enter a customer pickup area and cracked a second glass door, before fleeing into a nearby residential neighborhood and disappearing. "When I called my assistant manager, luckily the cops were still here and they verified my story,"... It's been a wild time in the Springs, after residents reported see what might have been an African lion — or a big dog —...

When her beagle, Rocco, squeezed himself under the backyard gate and disappeared into the streets of Queens, 5-year-old Natalie Villacis refused to believe - as her parents reluctantly told her - that she would never see the puppy again. That was in 2003. Last weekend, Rocco came home - after being found in Georgia. The prodigal pooch turned up in a shelter 850 miles away in Hinesville, and by a combination of chance and chip - the one embedded in his back - was reunited with Natalie, now 11, and her family. "When my mom told me they found Rocco,...

This video was arranged and animated to the song, “One Day”, sung by Evangelist, Ezekiel Cash. The Merlin falcon and its song are arranged in autumn scenery.

El Paso County deputies are looking for an African lion on the loose in the eastern part of the county. Sheriff's Lt. Lari Sevene said the first call came in of large cat chasing several dogs through a field off of Log Road. That call came in at 7:35 a.m. The resident told deputies the cat had a red mane and a big tail. Officers obtained a photo of the big cat. A second sighting was reported after the first and a second resident also took a picture of the lion.

Three people drowned in two separate incidents in the waters off Atlantic City and Wildwood Saturday, after getting pulled by strong rip currents from the effects of Hurricane Bertha, officials said. Bertha is now a tropical storm in the Atlantic Ocean approaching Bermuda. But meteorologists at the National Weather Service in Mount Holly said the rip currents are expected to remain a danger into the early part of this week. This morning, the Coast Guard shifted its search effort for a missing Wildwood swimmer from a rescue mission to a recovery operation. The swimmer was identified as 28-year-old Juan Moore...

Hundreds of feet of chain fencing have been stolen from a historic cemetery in Franklin, police said.

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. - A federal judge has overturned a decision by the U.S. Forest Service to allow oil and gas drilling near a forest and a river in Michigan's northern Lower Peninsula. ADVERTISEMENT U.S. District Judge David Lawson of Detroit ruled Thursday the agency had acted "arbitrarily and capriciously" in 2005 by giving Savoy Energy LP of Traverse City a permit to drill an exploratory well near the Au Sable River's south branch. (cont...)

A man and his pregnant fiancée are demanding $10 million from the Bronx Zoo after being stuck on a cable car for five hours above fang-baring, flesh-eating baboons. "They didn't know if they were going to live or die," said lawyer Adam Shapiro, who filed the lawsuit yesterday. Damien Foster and Nandi Taylor say they suffered "psychological trauma" and that Wednesday's ordeal put the pregnancy at risk. Three dozen people were stranded on the Skyfari cable-car ride until about 11 p.m. amid lightning.

This video of wildlife ducks is arranged with the Gospel song, Hallelujah, sung by the Five Blind Boys of Alabama.

Lifeguards spotted what they believed was a great white shark off Martha's Vineyard yesterday, forcing the closing of beaches and prompting the inevitable references to "Jaws," the movie thriller that was filmed on the island. The dorsal fin of the shark, sticking some 2 1/2 feet out of the water, was spotted 75 yards offshore at South Beach in Edgartown. Authorities received reports of other sightings along State Beach, on the island's northeast and the site of the opening scene of "Jaws." "It definitely creates some excitement in town," said Trish Lyman, a resident who works at The Boneyard surf...

Look at all three. Witnesses also saw sharks there too. Not unusual in warm weather (and sea temperatures) in Florida. By end of month they move north up Gulfstream.

Check out this scary video of a burglar stealing a family’s carpet. If anyone finds a carpet on ebay matching the rug in the video, please report it to the local authorities.

This is the enormous 13 and a half stone dog who was stuck for two hours after getting his head wedged in a cat flap. Huge hound Moses Chan had to be rescued by firefighters after squeezing his big head into the tiny hole. The 14-month-old Dogue de Bordeaux, who measures more than 5ft tall on his hind legs, had been trying to copy his owner's four cats, but didn't realise how big he was. 'I can't believe I have a blonde dog who thought he could fit in such a tiny gap,' said owner Lisa Saberi, who has only...

A teenager was stunned to find that a baby bat had been curled up inside her bra for five hours - as she was wearing it. Abbie Hawkins, a hotel receptionist, thought her mobile phone was ringing when she felt vibrations coming from her clothes. But she later discovered the tiny creature tucked away in the padded pocket of her underwear. As staff and colleagues crowded around, Miss Hawkins, 19, produced the frightened bat, which was the size of her hand. She said: "Once I realised it was a bat I was shocked, but then I felt quite sorry for...

Summer has barely begun, but Maine residents looking to install wood heating systems this winter may already have waited too long, stove dealers and firewood suppliers say. Stoves that burn firewood are available, but finding the logs will be difficult. Wood pellets are in good supply – for now. But the special stoves that burn them are largely sold out. With home heating oil averaging well above $4 a gallon, many Mainers are desperate to find a more affordable way to stay warm this winter. For households that have done nothing so far, however, lining up a stove and fuel...

Hey Everyone King Vanity thought yall should have a heads up to a fantastic side splitting comedy documentary that is on right now on Showtime. An Inconveinant Truth by Al Gore.

VANCOUVER - Marley the cat dropped 14 storeys out of a window of a high-rise and lived to meow about it. It may have been nature that lured him out, and it was nature that cushioned his fall. Angela Bester had left a window slightly ajar for her one-year-old Scottish Fold domestic cross she named after a favourite singer, Bob Marley, while she took an overnight trip to Whistler. When she returned to her 14th storey condo, she froze. "I saw the window and I knew instantly what had happened and I looked at the (uneaten) food and the water....

After this weekend's barbeques and fireworks displays, you might wonder why some people wind up covered in mosquito welts and others are bite-free. It's not a coincidence. Each person's individual body chemistry determines how many mosquitoes will come calling. According to Joe Conlon, a medical entomologist who advises the American Mosquito Control Association, the insects can detect their targets from nearly 100 feet away. But what are they seeking? Mostly the scent of carbon dioxide and lactic acid, two compounds that indicate to the hematophagous — or blood-sucking — pests that their next landing pad is nearby. (It's worth noting...

Just thought I'd post a thread where the various fireworks laws, regulations, etc. could be posted. National Council on Fireworks Safety Nice links to each State's fireworks laws. Here's their Safety Video Fireworks Classifications Various histories of fireworks....Fireworks.comWikipedia Fireworks entryPyrouniverse.com (lol) History of Fireworks

The smoke lingering in the air after a fireworks show doesn’t just obstruct views of the spectacular pyrotechnics — it’s also toxic for the environment. But it doesn't need to be. Scientists are finding new ways to make the rockets' red glare and bombs bursting in air more eco-friendly. "The problem is, what goes up must come down sometime," said Georg Steinhauser, a licensed pyrotechnician and a chemist at the Vienna University of Technology in Austria. "If you shoot something in the sky, that stuff can't just disappear." Steinhauser and a number of other chemists around the world are developing...

This video is an animation of a deer and rabbit. The rabbit meet the deer in the wild and expresses its thoughts. The voices of this video are, o7jimmy and grandson.

Famed chimp 'Moe' escapes into forest As of Monday, there was still no sign of Moe in the San Bernardino National Forest, but there were plenty of rumors about the missing chimp. Water was running and peanuts were missing at the Gem Ranch on Cajon Boulevard, and a dead chicken was found in the same area where Moe disappeared. Someone even called from Rancho Cucamonga saying there had been a possible Moe sighting in the caller's yard. Amidst the mayhem and the media circus at the scene, animal control officers and those close to Moe continued their search for the...

I live in a land locked area so when I see news like this it makes me jealous. While I get to trek up mountains, carrying my owners lunch and drink on my back, these dogs get to go out and surf. Yeah, that’s right, surf. (This year was the 3rd Annual Loews Coronado Bay Resort Surf Dog Competition at Imperial Beach in California. These canines bring a whole new meaning to the term sea dog.) See last years winner on video...

A teenage girl riding in an all-night bicycle race suffered severe injuries early this morning when a bear attacked her on a trail ... Police officers with shotguns escorted medics into dark woods to retrieve the girl... "She was cut up and bit pretty good," After the mauling, the girl used her cell phone to call 911 but was unable to communicate... Another rider who came along found her sitting on the ground and said she could utter only one word: "Bear." He then used her phone to make another call for help. Sinnott said he didn't arrive in time...

Boat passengers witness shark attack June 28, 2008 CHATHAM — Fourteen passengers on a seal watch boat saw a shark attack and kill a seal yesterday during a cruise to Monomoy Island. The island, which is a national wildlife refuge, is home to hundreds of seals and also a favored feeding ground of several species of sharks. Capt. Bob Littlefield is sure the shark he saw rip a seal in half yesterday afternoon was a great white. "It was a quite a bloody mess," said Littlefield, who has been a captain on Cape Cod for 32 years. Littlefield was steering...

I have never posted a vanity, so I hope I did this correctly - I'd like to propost that every year, June 26 be recognized by lovers of freedom everywhere as "Heller Day." We could all gather our loved ones for a day of target practice and have a barbecue or something. Let's all remember the day that the Supreme Court declared the obvious: we have an individual right to bear arms.