Imagine This Giant Shark At Your Backyard

Many in Southwest Florida are used to having some wildlife in their backyard. In this case, the wildlife was a shark. An 8 to 9 foot bull shark has been swimming very close to the condos that line Hickory Boulevard. Residents say it’s not the first time.

Neighbors say people are chumming — throwing bait into the water — which is causing the sharks to return. Now, they are asking the city to get involved and prohibit fishing as well as designate the area as a swimming only area. See video below after cut

Busted! New Brunswick man who owned python that killed two boys arrested

Noah Barthe, left, and Connor Barthe pose in this undated photo posted on the Facebook page of Mandy Trecartin.

The Canadian Press

The man who owned the python that killed two young boys in New Brunswick in August 2013 has been arrested in the case, his lawyer said Thursday.

Leslie Matchim said Jean-Claude Savoie was arrested Thursday by police in the Montreal area, but he doesn't know what charge or charges his client may face.

Savoie moved from Campbellton, N.B., where the boys died to live in the Montreal area, Matchim said.

"It certainly by no means was any attempt to evade anything," Matchim said in an interview. "I've mentioned on several occasions in my dealings with the police where he is located."

New Document Shows Canadians Crying 'Fowl' Over Lack of Ethnic Chicken

Steve Rennie, The Canadian Press

Some people have been crying foul over the lack of ethnic chicken in Canada.

Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz got an earful from customers who couldn't find particular poultry, a newly released document shows.

"Concerns about the availability of ethnic chicken have largely focused on supplies of specialty birds (e.g. chicken from the Silkie and Taiwanese breeds), kosher and Hong Kong chicken," the document says.

The Canadian Press obtained the four-page document under the Access to Information Act.

It says complaints flooded Ritz's office after the May 2013 closure of Toronto-based Chai Poultry, one of Canada's two suppliers of kosher chicken.

Chai Poultry sold its quota of chicken allocation to a halal processing plant based in the southern Ontario of town of Milton.

Chinese Couple Spends Life Savings On Stray Animals

A husband and wife in China are seeking new homes for more than 50 cats and dogs, after spending their life savings looking after the animals.

Hu Fengduan and his wife live alongside the pets in a flat measuring just 20 sq m (215 sq ft), the China News Service reports.

The animals are former strays which the couple took in from the streets of Chengdu, in the southwestern province of Sichuan. It started 10 years ago with the rescue of a cat who was stuck on a roof, Mr Hu is quoted to have said.

Caption This! Family Accepts Strange Monkey To Play Mother Role To Their New Baby

A family in India have accepted a monkey who stumbled into their home and started playing the role of a ‘mother’ to their little baby. At first they were scared when they first saw the animal, but were later relaxed when he played and acted like a ‘mummy’ to their daughter. Hear the father;

US Woman Finds 5-Foot Snake in Toilet

It started out as just another regular day at work for San Diego – based woman, Stephanie Lacsa.

However, the day took an unexpected turn during a visit to the bathroom at the Public Relations offices where she worked.

Noticing that the toilet water level was higher than usual, Lacsa used a plunger to try to unclog the toilet. The water level subsequently reduced. However, she then saw that something brown appeared in the toilet – then it kept rising, until she saw a tongue. She then realized that a large 5-foot boa constrictor was emerging from the toilet.

Two Rhino Poachers Shot Dead in South Africa’s Kruger Park

Two suspected Rhino poachers were shot dead on Monday after they opened fire on rangers in South Africa’s Kruger National Park, a park spokesman said.

Kruger spokesman, William Mabasa said on Monday that poachers had killed a record number of rhinos in 2014 for their horns, which were coveted as an ingredient in traditional medicine in Vietnam and China.

“The rangers were on patrol when they came across a trio of armed men who started shooting,’’ Mabasa said.

However, two of the men were killed while a third escaped.

Chinese Businessman Jailed For 13 Years For Buying And Killing Tigers To Eat

A wealthy Chinese businessman has been jailed for 13 years for hiring poachers to kill three tigers so he could eat their penises and drink their blood. Xi Pat had 'a special hobby of grilling tiger bones, boning tiger paws, storing tiger penis, eating tiger meat and drinking tiger blood alcohol'.

A court heard he ate the genitals and drank the animals' blood before giving the rest of the meat to his business friends and partners.

The court also heard he organised three separate trips last year for 15 people, including himself, to Leizhou in the southern province of Guangdong, where they bought tigers for a 'huge amount of money' that were killed and dismembered as they watched.

One of the group filmed the entire process of a tiger slaughter with his mobile phone. The footage was later obtained by police.

Mouse Delays Qatar Airways Long-Haul Flight For Six Hours

The Local
A Qatar Airways flight from Madrid to Doha was delayed for more than six hours after a mouse was discovered in the cabin causing alarm among the passengers.

The rogue rodent was spied upon landing, running down the aisle of the plane, causing alarm among passengers.

The entire cabin had to be fumigated causing a delay of over six hours for passengers in Madrid’s Adolfo Suárez Barajas airport, who were waiting to board.

Germany Police Hunt Stolen Pigeon Worth $184,000

Police in Germany are looking for a missing pigeon, and any finder could be in line for a 10,000-euro ($12,250) reward. Duesseldorf police said Tuesday that the 6-year-old male homing pigeon, named AS 969, was stolen at some point on Saturday night from a locked aviary in the city's suburbs.

They say the light gray bird is valued by its owner at 150,000 euros ($184,000) and police suspect the thief or thieves were "connoisseurs" as it was the most valuable in an aviary full of other homing pigeons.

The owner offered a 10,000-euro reward for the bird's recovery.

Snowy owl 'epidemic' sweeps across Ontario

CBC

Snowy owls have flocked to Ontario in huge, rare numbers for the second consecutive year, creating a boon for bird watching and a bane for airport managers.

Last year marked the largest invasion of snowy owls ever recorded in eastern Ontario, and similar numbers are expected this year.

In southern Ontario, Staff at Windsor International Airport expect to trap, band and release 35 snowy owls this winter. That's about the same amount as last year.

At least a dozen snowy owls showed up in the month of December alone, airport manager Phil Roberts said.

"At the very end of December, we've had four to five [banded] in the course of a couple days and still two to three birds that are loafing around," Roberts said.

Once a bird is trapped, the airport keeps it for 24 hours, bands and measures it, then drives it 50 km away to either to Belle River or Holiday Beach.

Snowy owls typically weigh between 3.5 and 5.5 kilograms – or up to 12 pounds.

About time! NewYork ban cosmetic pet tattoo, piercings

 Michael Virtanen | The Associated Press
 Body art is not for animals, at least not in New York.

It will soon be a crime to pierce or tattoo your companion animal anywhere in the state.

“It’s simply cruel,” said Assembly member Linda Rosenthal. The Manhattan Democrat sponsored the legislation. While people can choose the pain of tattoos or piercings to satisfy their own “esthetic predilections,” companion animals don’t have that luxury, she said.

The law signed Monday by Gov. Andrew Cuomo takes effect in 120 days.

There’s an exception for markings done under a veterinarian’s supervision for a medical reason or identification.

Rosenthal said that’s intended, for example, for pets like her cat, which was spayed by a vet and given a little green mark to indicate that.

When done specifically for identification, the law says tattoos should include only numbers and letters allotted for a tattoo identification registry.

Thishappened! Mexico congress passes national ban on circus animals

A circus dog performs in costume during a free public show in Mexico City's main square, the Zocalo, Tuesday, July 22, 2014. Mexico's congress passed a national ban on circus animals on Thursday, Dec. 11, 2014.| AP/Rebecca Blackwell

Mexico's congress has passed legislation to ban the use of animals in circuses across the country.

The lower chamber's vote Thursday followed one earlier in the week by the Senate and came six months after Mexico City passed a similar ban that is to go into effect next year. Six states also adopted bans.

The House of Deputies said in a statement that the chamber voted 267-66 to approve the bill aimed at combating mistreatment of animals. It calls for fines for violations and requires circuses to submit lists of the wildlife they possess, which would then be made available to zoos interested in taking the animals.

The bill now needs the signature of President Enrique Pena Nieto. He hasn't spoken about the proposal, but it was introduced by an allied party.

List of plants and animals protected by Canadian Cities

The Canadian Press
Here’s a list of the types of plants and animals protected in 2013 under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. Canada has registered reservations against all of them.

— Manatees

— Turtles including leatherbacks, big-headed turtles, soft-shelled turtles, side-necked turtles, roofed turtles, box turtles, leaf turtles, river turtles, spiny turtles, black turtles, eyed turtles, giant turtles, cane turtles, tortoises and terrapins

— Sawfish

— Chamois and vicuna

— Greater prairie chicken

— Requiem sharks, hammerhead sharks, porbeagle sharks

— Manta rays

RIP! World record holding two-faced cat dies at the age of 15

ADAM WITHNAL | INdependent 
The world’s oldest two-faced cat has died of cancer, after defying veterinary science to reach the ripe old age of 15.

Named Frank and Louie – or “Frankenlouie” for short – the animal was declared the longest-surviving two-faced cat on the planet when he was entered into the 2012 edition of Guinness World Records.

Born with three eyes, two noses and two mouths, Frank and Louie belonged to a group known as Janus cats, named after the Roman god.

Janus cats suffer from a rare congenital disorder known as craniofacial duplication, the result of hyperactivity from the protein that governs facial development in foetuses. They almost never survive, usually through difficulties with the development of the oesophagus.

Speaking to the Telegram of Worcester in Massachusetts, Frank and Louie’s owner Martha Stevens said he was put down after his condition deteriorated over Thanksgiving.

Disgruntled man hurls snake at Saskatchewan Tim Hortons worker over sandwich dispute

The Canadian Press
Two men are facing mischief charges after a sandwich order sent them into a hissy fit at a Tim Hortons restaurant in Saskatoon.

Police say the 20-year-olds began arguing with an employee because they wanted their onions diced.

The argument got worse, and one of the men pulled a snake from his friend’s pocket and threw it behind the counter.

Officers called to the scene were able to quickly locate the snake and determined it was non-poisonous.

The two men were arrested nearby.

Police have found a temporary home for the snake until it can be released into the wild next spring.

South African Man Slice Open A Pregnant Dead Shark To Save Its Pups

Pictures of a gruesome but remarkable effort of a man saving three shark pups from their dead mother before releasing them into the ocean on a beach in Cape Town, South Africa as emerged online. 

A family found the deceased mother shark on the beach but noticed there was still movement inside. Realising the animal may have been pregnant, the head of the family, used a knife to perform a makeshift C-section on the animal, successfully saving three pups.

Paraplegic Dog From Thailand, Finds New Home In Canada

Jesse Ferreras | HuffPost
Meagan Penman was vacationing in Thailand months ago when she came upon a dog that could only use its front legs to walk.

The dog, which she later named Leo, was malnourished, covered in ticks and dragging himself along, apparently unable to move his hind legs, according to a YouCaring page.

Taking pity on the canine, she contacted a number of rescue shelters in the area but none could take him.

So Penman set up a GoFundMe page on June 21 in an effort to bring Leo back home to Canada, where he could obtain the "vet care he needs."

She also set up a Facebook page to update people on her efforts.

On July 3, after travelling elsewhere, she reunited with the dog on a beach and carried him to a veterinarian. A Facebook post indicated that his knees had been skinned from crawling around.

X-rays showed that his back was broken, and that he would "never walk again."

Aww, so cute! Dog Tucks Baby Into Bed

Dope! Watch Young Elephant Fights Off 14 Lions!