Bits and Bites from Around the World > Woman drowns mini-schnauzer in airport bathroom; Bats takeover N.B. high school

 

Florida woman drowned her dog in

Orlando airport bathroom

A Florida woman has been accused of drowning her dog in an airport bathroom after she learned she could not take it on a flight with her.

The investigation into the death of the 9-year-old miniature schnauzer started when a janitor found the dog in a garbage bag in a bathroom stall at Orlando International Airport.

File photo

In an arrest affidavit, the Orlando Police Department wrote that 57-year-old Alison Lawrence arrived at the airport on Dec. 16, 2024, with her dog, Tywinn, for a flight to Colombia.

The affidavit claims that Lawrence was denied boarding at her gate due to improper travel paperwork for her pet. Police allege she then took the dog to a nearby bathroom and drowned it in a toilet.

A woman who was working at the time told police she saw a woman, later identified as Lawrence, sitting on the bathroom floor of a stall, cleaning up a large amount of water and dog food.

The employee said she had to tend to an emergency elsewhere, and when she returned, she saw Lawrence exit the stall and leave with a purse and suitcase.

That’s when the employee removed the trash bag from the canister and found the dog, the affidavit says.

The dog’s tags had Lawrence’s name and contact information on it, police said.

According to police, surveillance footage captured Lawrence entering the airport with her dog, and later exiting the bathroom without the dog and then later seen at her gate.

Authorities said the woman had been told she could not bring her dog aboard because she did not have the proper paperwork. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, dogs travelling from the U.S. to Colombia must be accompanied by a veterinarian-issued health certificate and a rabies vaccination certificate.

The dog was identified by its implanted microchip and a necropsy determined that Tywinn had been drowned. U.S. Customs and Border Protection also confirmed to detectives that the woman had boarded a flight to Bogota, Colombia, and then flew to Ecuador.

Lawrence was taken into custody Tuesday in Lake County, Fla., and charged with aggravated animal cruelty, a third-degree felony.

She’s since posted a US$5,000 bond, police confirmed.

Animal cruelty charges in Florida can result in up to five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

— With files from The Associated Press

Bats take over this New Brunswick school.

Some students say they were even chased

By Rebecca Lau & Anna Mandin  Global News

Posted March 22, 2025 2:00 am

 Updated March 21, 2025 2:43 pm

 3 min read

Some New Brunswick students have been literally dodging bats — the flying creatures — while their high school deals with an infestation.

More than two dozen of the winged animals have been found inside Tobique Valley High School’s walls in Plaster Rock, N.B.

Grade 7 student Teagan O’Neil-Gamblin said he first spotted a bat last Friday, after a classmate came running into the classroom to escape.

“I went to the bathroom right when she came in, and I saw (the bat) in the corner of the hallway, and it was like upside down, sleeping-looking almost,” he said.

His mother, Crystal O’Neil, said another parent reached out to her and reported that her child was “chased down the hallway on Friday.”

“As a result, these sonar machines were turned on Friday and it kind of woke the bats out of hibernation,” said O’Neil.

“And it made them a little bit crazy. And then the building’s closed all weekend.”

By Monday, word was spreading about the bats.

“We went to first period and an announcement came that we needed to shut our doors because bats are roaming around.,” O’Neil-Gamblin said.

“We had to shut our doors throughout the whole entire day.”

He said at that point, staff told students 10 bats had been found.

By Tuesday, nerves were on end.

“Tuesday I was really hoping there was no school, but then there was school,” he said  “A teacher came here and told us that the issue was gone. And if we have any questions to ask, then sort of talk about it in the hallways and stuff.”

His mother said students were told to stay inside classrooms on Thursday again, however, after yet another student was chased by a bat.

“I’m grateful that nobody’s been bit. But I think it’s only going to be a matter of time before somebody is going to be bit,” she said.

“Bats are known for many, many diseases. And it’s just not something I want my children to be touching or involved in in any way.”

She’s also concerned about air quality. Parents have heard there is guano, or bat feces, in the school’s attic.

“The ventilation is a huge, huge concern that most parents have,” she said.

“They’re concerned with these bats being awake — if they do have for diseases, if rabies is a problem, they’re concerned that children will be bit.”

In an emailed statement, Anglophone School District West confirmed about 28 bats have been removed.

“Many were found in areas away from the school population. We have engaged with third party companies to inspect and assess for the presence of guano and to provide abatement solutions to prevent future issues,” wrote spokesperson Paul MacIntosh.

MacIntosh also said the attic space has no impact on the school’s ventilation.

Meanwhile, the New Brunswick Teachers’ Federation told Global News it will “remain vigilant in monitoring the school district’s response” and said it is the employer’s “obligation” to protect the health and safety of all.

O’Neil said she and other parents are advocating for the school to be shut down and the problem properly dealt with.

She has two children who attend the school and don’t want to miss classes because the workload in high school is so demanding, but she’s worried about their concentration levels and health.

“Nobody is learning any math or English in the building when all this is going on, so it’s best to just shut it down, clean it up, and then everybody’s minds will be at ease and they can concentrate better in the building,” she said.

Bits and Bites from Around the World > Culling street dogs in Morocco, by the millions; Pygmy Owl survives hit by car in central B.C.

 

Three MILLION dogs to be killed in Morocco ahead of the FIFA World Cup in a‘brutal clean-up of the streets'

by Taryn Pedlar, Daily Mail, January 14, 2025:

A top conservationist has condemned Morocco and urged FIFA to take action over the slaughter of three million street dogs ahead of the 2030 World Cup.

Campaigners claim that the animals could be killed in a brutal ‘clean-up’ operation to make cities more presentable to visiting football fans.

Reports suggest thousands of stray dogs have already been massacred in venues across the North African nation, with fears the killings are escalating.

Jane Goodall, a prominent animal rights campaigner, has now written to the international football association demanding immediate action, accusing the organisation of turning a blind eye to what she calls ‘a horrific act of barbarity’.

In the letter addressed to FIFA’s Secretary General Mattias Grafström, Goodall said she was left appalled to see that Moroccan authorities were engaging in the large-scale killings – an initiative which allegedly stopped in August 2024.

‘I am equally appalled to learn from the IAWPC – International Animal Coalition that you have been presented with detailed dossiers documenting these horrific acts, most of which are conducted in the most brutal and cruel fashion imaginable, and yet appear to have ignored them,’ she continued.

The animal rights activist then questioned how football fans around the world would react if they knew of the brutality the helpless animals were facing in the run up to the games….

 

'Tiny but tough,' Pygmy Owl survives

being hit by car in Cariboo

A Northern Pygmy Owl survived being hit by a car thanks to a local birder

Patrick Davies
a day ago

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1 / 9 A Northern Pygmy Owl dubbed Tiny But Tough who was hit by a car on Highway 97 peers at the camera. (Murray Zelt photo)Murray Zelt

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A Northern Pygmy Owl proved its toughness earlier this month after getting hit by a car on Highway 97 in early January.

The incident occurred around Jan. 8 near the turnoff to Canim Hendrix Road while local wildlife photographer Murray Zelt was out photographing the diminutive predator. Zelt said he saw the accident happen in real-time and was horrified. Springing into action Zelt dashed onto the highway to retrieve what he thought was the owl's corpse only to be surprised when it started showing signs of life. 

"I ran out and picked it up with my bare hands and took it back to my car. I was literally in tears, I love watching these beautiful creatures," Zelt said. "I was kind of praying, basically, don't let it die but its little feet and talons were still quivering so I knew there was still a pulse and a chance." 

Zelt has been photographing wildlife for several years now since his forced retirement after the Chasm Sawmill closed down in 2019. He said he has always enjoyed being out in nature to camp and fish, so taking photos of wildlife and his adventures was a natural fit. 

One of his favourite subjects to take pictures of includes the 17 different species of owls that make B.C. their home. This winter he said he has been seeing a lot more owls than usual and noticed a Northern Pygmy Owl hunting near Highway 97 on Jan. 7. After photographing it he decided to return the next day to get some more photos. 

"This year has been an incredible year for the owls for whatever reason, because of the mild winter," Zelt remarked. "It's pretty neat to see them 'cause they're not that common, normally." 

When he returned Zelt said it was late in the afternoon and he watched the owl hop from power line to power line peering down into the ditches. Zelt remarked the Northern Pygmy Owl was hunting for voles, one of its primary food sources. Suddenly Zelt said he saw it dart down into the snow and then after a few seconds come up with a vole in its talons. 

"It burst out of the snow and this vole was as big as the owl, almost the exact same size, it was incredible. Instead of flying back up onto the powerline or a nearby branch of a tree or shrub it darted across the highway around shoulder height," Zelt said. "I could see it unfold right in front of my eyes as this car, going about 90 clicks, nails it dead on the and owl bounced on the road. I literally yelled 'oh no!"

Another vehicle passed over the top of the owl before Zelt was able to retrieve it from the road. At first, Zelt thought the owl's claws twitching were its death spasms but after getting into his car, intending to take it home for a burial, he noticed the owl trying to stand up, much to his shock. 

Worried the owl would start trying to fly in his car, Zelt grabbed a cloth grocery bag and picked the owl up to put it inside. When he grabbed it he said it sunk his talons into his finger, another encouraging sign.

"It didn't feel good, let me tell you. There were three of them all embedding into my finger so I had to pry them one at a time with my other hand. Didn't draw blood but I thought 'gee, it's got some life, it's got some strength'."

After driving to his home in Lac La Hache, Zelt put the owl in a shoe box and called up the Orphaned Wildlife Rehabilitation Society (OWL). A few years ago Zelt said he took care of a Great Horned Owl who had also been hit by his nephew, so he has contacts with OWL. They told him to keep the owl for observation overnight and if it was able to fly in his home with no discernable injuries he should be alright to release it back into the wild. 

"He said you would be surprised by how tough these little guys are. Sometimes they can really take a licking and keep on ticking," Zelt remarked. "That evening I went to check on it and it was looking, turning its head around and seemed very alert. I'm thinking this is a miracle and when I went to close the box it flew right over the top of my shoulder and landed on top of my tennis racket." 

Zelt said he nicknamed the owl TBT after that, short for Tiny But Tough, and made plans to release it the next day. Calling up a wildlife photographer friend from Canim Lake, named Mernie Senchuk, to help in the release the two headed out to the general area where he found the owl, though they made sure to stay well away from the highway. 

"I opened the box and pulled it out and it literally sat on my hand for about five seconds. It was almost like a thank you or farewell and then it just flew off really strong and far off into the bushes," Zelt remarked. "We were unbelievably impressed it was back where it belonged. It really seems like a miracle, I have no idea how it survived that impact. It was a beautiful ending, for sure." 

Over the last few days since releasing TBT, Zelt said he's seen a Northern Pygmy Owl near the same area and he believes it is now back to its usual "risky business." While he's happy with the outcome, Zelt said this story illustrates the importance of keeping an eye out for owls around dawn and dusk near roads. Senchuk herself told him driving back from the release she had to slam on the brakes when another pygmy owl flew out in front of her. 

"(People) should be aware when they're driving near dawn and dusk there are a lot of owls this year. Quite a few people I connect with on social media or birding sites are all saying the same thing. I think it's the low snow load we have combined with the low weather. They truly are everywhere this year and we need to be a little extra cautious and give them their space."

Bits and Bites from Around the World > Dogs Kill Elderly Man - Owner Charged; Crane refuses to leave it's saviour

..

First responders fight off vicious dogs who killed 80-year-old man,

injured 3 others in San Antonio

By Patrick Reilly

February 24, 2023 10:42pm  Updated

First responders at the scene where an 80-year-old man was killed and three others were injured in a dog attack

 in San Antonio Friday. KSAT

An elderly man was killed and three others were hospitalized after a vicious dog attack in San Antonio Friday, authorities said.

Emergency crews responded to the “horrific scene” in the Texas city’s West Side around 2 p.m. and found a “completely bloody” 80-year-old man being dragged onto the sidewalk by one of two American Staffordshire terriers involved in the deadly attack, San Antonio Fire Chief Charles Hood told KSAT.

When SAFD firefighters got off the truck they were attacked by the dogs and forced to defend themselves with pickaxes and pike poles while they tried to treat the victim, he said.

“This is not something normal for us. We usually don’t show up and have to defend patients from animals or ourselves,” Hood said.

The elderly man was given blood at the scene but died of his injuries, according to officials.

The horror unfolded after the elderly man and a 74-year-old woman, who had just arrived on the street to visit friends, stepped outside of their vehicle, San Antonio police said.

At that time, the two dogs escaped from the neighbor’s yard and attacked the duo — who were described by police as a couple.

The two dogs involved in the attack and another from the same home were unrestrained at the time

and were taken into the custody of San Antonio Animal Care Services. KSAT

The dogs caused “visible bite injuries to both victims,” police said. A fire captain suffered a bite wound to the leg and a third victim was bitten in the hand. All three surviving victims were taken to University Hospital for treatment.

“Horrific scene, horrific for the people who experienced it and horrific for our firefighters that were part of this,” Hood said.

The two dogs involved in the attack and another dog from the same home were unrestrained at the time and have been taken into the custody of San Antonio Animal Care Services. They will reportedly be euthanized Friday night.

The two Staffordshire terriers, a male and female, were involved in another attack two years ago when they were also impounded with animal services, ACS Director Shannon Sims told KSAT.

Police arrested dog owner Christian Moreno following the attacks.

San Antonio Police Department

Sims said the shelter has received numerous calls from concerned neighbors over the last two years claiming the dogs were neglected and seemed to be strays.

The dogs’ owner, Christian Moreno, 31, was arrested and is facing felony charges of attack by dangerous dog causes death and injury to an elderly, police said.

'Bachcha' the Sarus crane refuses to leave its saviour

Strangely, the crane's love for the man does not extend

to his family members

'Bachcha' the Sarus crane with its saviour Mohammed Arif.

'Published:  March 07, 2023 08:19

IANS

  

Lucknow: Mohammed Arif, 30, works as a harvester operator in Mandka village of Amethi's Jamo development block.

Arif had spotted a badly injured Sarus crane in a field in February last year.

"The bird was bleeding profusely in its right leg and I could see it was in a lot of pain. I picked it up and brought the bird home. I put some medicine on its leg and applied a plaster by fixing a bamboo stick and covering it with bandages. I have an outhouse, basically a shed with a tin roof where the bird was kept," Arif said.

The bird took some time to recover.

"During the day, when I left for my work, the crane would hop around and mingle with other birds. But when I came home in the evening, the crane would come to me, cuddle me and we ate dinner together," Arif said.

By April, the bird had fully recovered but it refused to leave his home.

"Life has not been the same since then. Now, wherever I go, the Sarus, whom everyone calls 'Bachcha', accompanies me to work. The bird takes a stroll when I am working and then we both have lunch together before returning home in the evening," he adds.

He said, "People stare at us and take our photographs. Some even make reels but now I enjoy the stares."

During the winter season other Sarus cranes arrive in the area but Bachcha has not gone back with them.

Strangely, the crane's love for Arif does not extend to his family members.

Arif's wife Mehrunissa said, "Whenever in the absence of my husband, I have gone to feed him, I have been attacked. Neither I nor my two kids dare go near the sarus."

Wildlife experts have a different opinion of the incident and they advise caution.

Sarus cranes are regarded as the least social crane species. They can be very protective when nesting and are aggressive towards intruders.

Lucknow divisional forest officer Ravi Singh said that 'Sarus' is a wild bird under the Wildlife Protection Act.

"We have a system to protect and nurture it, but one should be cautious. You cannot touch its wings or hold it near you. No human touch is allowed," he said.

The Sarus must be allowed to live itself in the wild and it cannot be domesticated and allowed contact with humans. A diet of insects and fish must be given to the bird, he added.

What if the bird doesn't want to live in the wild and prefers ham sandwiches for lunch?

Bits and Bites > The Netherlands to Ban Pugs and other Designer Pets

..

Dutch to ban unhealthy designer pets

Charlotte VAN OUWERKERK

Fri, January 20, 2023 at 7:55 AM PST

The Netherlands wants to ban pets such as flat-faced dogs and cats with folded ears, which look sweet but suffer "miserable" health problems, the government said on Friday.

Dutch Agriculture Minister Piet Adema said he would seek to outlaw the ownership of the designer breeds and to ban photos of them in advertising or on social media.

"We make life miserable for innocent animals, purely because we think they are 'beautiful' and 'cute'," Adema said in a statement.

"That is why today we are taking a big step towards a Netherlands where no pet has to suffer from his or her appearance."

Despite sought-after looks that have made them a favourite with celebrities and a fixture among social media influencers, such pets suffer from a range of health conditions.

The Dutch minister said that owners often "have the best of intentions but are often unaware of the dark side of their pets' appearance".

"This subject touches me as a minister but also as a human," added Adema.

The government would now work out a full list of affected breeds, he said, adding that it could take some time.

But the public broadcaster NOS said squish-faced pugs could be among those banned.

The Netherlands banned the breeding of pets that are affected by their appearance in 2014, but some animals were still being traded illegally or bought from abroad.

The proposed new rules are designed to close a loophole so that it will also be illegal to own them.

In 2019, the Dutch government updated the rules to specifically apply to dogs whose snout is less than half the length of their skull.

- 'Out of breath' -

"Dogs with snouts that are too short are constantly out of breath, making them gasp throughout their life," Adema said in a letter to parliament setting out the proposal.

"Dogs that have a deviant skull shape may suffer from a permanent headache.

"Cats with folding ears have deviated cartilage which can cause them a lot of pain."

The fold-eared felines would definitely qualify for a ban, as was already the case in the Flanders region of neighbouring Belgium, the agriculture ministry said.

Islam - Current Day > The Taliban's Islam is not working any better for men than it is for women and girls

..

We all know that women and girls have a very difficult life in Taliban Afghanistan,

but the number of men addicted to drugs is very disturbing.

What does this say about the Taliban's version of Islam?

Despair and poverty fuel drug use in Afghanistan

By EBRAHIM NOROOZI

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Hundreds of men, strung out on heroin, opium and meth, were strewn over the hillside overlooking Kabul, some in tents, some lying in the dirt. Dogs skulked around because they sometimes give them drugs, and there were bodies of overdosed dogs amid the garbage. Men here as well slip, quiet and alone, across the line from oblivion and despair to death.

“There’s a dead man next to you,” someone told me as I picked my way among them, taking pictures. “We buried someone over there earlier,” another said further down.

An Afghan drug addict gives heroin to an addicted dog on the edge of a hill in the city of Kabul,

Afghanistan. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

The body of a dead addict lies covered by a shawl in an area inhabited by drug users under a bridge in Kabul, Afghanistan. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

One man lay face down in the mud, unmoving. I shook him by the shoulder and asked if he was alive. He turned his head a bit, just half out of the mud, and whispered that he was.

“You’re dying,” I told him. “Try to survive.”

“It’s fine,” he said, his voice exhausted. “It’s okay to die.”

He lifted his body a little. I gave him some water, and someone gave him a glass pipe of heroin. Smoking it gave him some energy. He said his name was Dawood. He had lost a leg to a mine about a decade ago during the war; after that he couldn’t work, and his life fell apart. He had turned to drugs to escape.

Hundreds of Afghan addicts gather under a bridge to consume drugs, mostly heroin and

methamphetamines in the city of Kabul, Afghanistan. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

Drug addiction has long been a problem in Afghanistan, the world’s biggest producer of opium and heroin and now a major source of meth. The ranks of the addicted have been fueled by persistent poverty and by decades of war that left few families unscarred.

It appears to only be getting worse since the country’s economy collapsed after the seizure of power by the Taliban in August last year and the subsequent halt of international financing. Families that were once able to get by found their livelihoods cut off, leaving many barely able to afford food. Millions have joined the ranks of the impoverished.

The growing numbers of addicts are found around Kabul, living in parks and sewage drains, under bridges, on open hillsides.

Afghans drug addicts gather under a bridge to smoke heroin, as the addicted and hungover dogs

have fallen on the ground, in the city of Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, June 7, 2022.

Afghan drug addicts gather under a bridge to smoke heroin, as overdosed dogs lie on the ground,

in the city of Kabul, Afghanistan. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

An Afghan drug addict smokes heroin on the edge of a hill in the city of Kabul, Afghanistan.

(AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

A 2015 survey by the U.N. estimated that up to 2.3 million people had used drugs that year, which would have amounted to around 5% of the population at the time. Now, seven years later, the number is not known, but it’s believed to have only increased, said the head of the Drug Demand Reduction Department, Dr. Zalmel, who like many Afghans uses only one name.

The Taliban, who seized power nearly a year ago, have launched an aggressive campaign to eradicate poppy cultivation. At the same time, they inherited the ousted, internationally backed government’s policy of rounding up addicts and forcing them into camps.

Afghan drug addicts who were rounded up during a Taliban raid wait in a truck to be taken to

a drug treatment camp, in Kabul, Afghanistan. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

Afghan drug addicts who were rounded up during a Taliban raid wait in a truck to be taken to

a drug treatment camp, in Kabul, Afghanistan. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

On two nights earlier in the summer, Taliban fighters stormed two areas where addicts gather — the one on the hillside and another under a bridge. In total, they collected some 1,500 people, according to officials in charge of registering them. They were herded into trucks and cars and taken to the Avicenna Medical Hospital for Drug Treatment, a former U.S. military base that in 2016 was converted into a drug treatment center.

It’s the biggest of a number of addict treatment camps around Kabul. There, the addicts were shaved and kept in barracks for 45 days. They receive no treatment or medication as they go through withdrawal. Since the Taliban seizure of power, the international funding on which the Afghan government relied has been cut off, so the camp barely has enough funding to feed its inmate-patients.

Drug addicts detained during a Taliban raid wait to have their heads shaved in a drug addiction treatment camp in Kabul, Afghanistan. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

But the camps do little to break addiction.

A week after the raids, I went back to both locations, and both were once again full of hundreds of people.

On the hillside, I saw a man who was clearly not an addict. In the darkness, he wandered among the men, shining a feeble flashlight on each. He was searching for his brother, who became addicted years ago and left home. He goes from site to site, through Kabul’s netherworld. “I hope one day I can find him,” he said.

An Afghan searches for his drug addicted brother among other addicts under a bridge in Kabul, Afghanistan. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

At the site under the bridge, the stench of sewage and garbage was overwhelming. One man, Nazer, in his 30s, seemed to be respected among his fellow addicts; he broke up fights among them and negotiated disputes.

He told me he spends most of his days here under the bridge but goes to his house every once in a while. Addiction has spread throughout his family, he said.

When I expressed surprised that the den under the bridge had filled up again, Nazir gave a smile. “It’s normal,” he said. “Every day, they become more and more ... it never ends.”