Bits and Bites from Around the World > Thousands jump into Polar Bear swims in BC; Dog chases squirrel 50 feet up a tree

 

Thousands participate in Polar Bear Swims around B.C.

Thousands of people braved frigid waters on New Year’s Day to participate in Polar Bear Swims around B.C.

Crowds for the plunge in White Rock, which celebrated its 55th anniversary this year, were estimated at between 2,000 and 3,000.

“We’re really happy it’s not raining,” Melanie Smith with the White Rock Polar Bear Plunge told Global News. “When it rains, we obviously have way less people come out, which is disappointing…

“But no, today I think it’s about five degrees. The water is seven and a half degrees. So it’s warmer in the water, guys.”

1:51

Thousands gather for record-breaking attendance at annual Polar Bear Swim in Vancouver

Other cities holding Polar Bear Swims included Vancouver, Port Moody, Kelowna and Prince Rupert.

The first Polar Bear Swim in Vancouver took place in 1976 with 641 people registering for the event.

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Squirrel-chasing dog defies gravity with

50-foot tree climb in Alberta

Dogs are typically known for their strong noses, protective nature and being man’s best friend. But one Alberta pup is defying that, and maybe defying gravity by climbing all the way up a 50-foot tree.

Tigger is just like any other young dog: she likes to play, run around her yard and chase squirrels.

On Sunday, Tigger was taking part in her favourite activities as usual on the family’s property west of Edmonton, on Wabamun Lake.

“I went outside with her, she had been watching a squirrel and she went to the spruce trees it’s normally in. I walked away a bit and then I turned around and she was gone,” said Sasha Marks, Tigger’s mom.

Marks thought her pet might’ve gone to visit their neighbours, instead, something she never expected.

“I looked up and she was 50 feet up in the tree, that’s always been there and she’s never climbed it before. But that day she decided to,” Marks said.

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Sasha Marks dog Tigger after she climbed up a 50-foot tree at Wabamun Lake. Sasha Marks / Submitted

The one-year-old coonhound cross climbed the family’s willow tree all on her own. But, shortly after seeing Tigger in the tree, panic set in.

Marks was afraid Tigger could get hurt if she fell — unlike a cat, she probably wouldn’t land on her feet. Marks started laying down little mattresses by the tree, in case the pup slipped.

With Marks’ family away on a ski trip, she wasn’t able to grab Tigger from the tree by herself. So she turned to firefighters to rescue the dog that barked up the wrong tree.

“When they came out and looked they said ‘Yep, it’s a dog in a tree.’ They were in a little bit of disbelief too,” Marks said.

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Tigger being rescued from the tree by local firefighters after she climbed all the way up. Sasha Marks / Submitted

The shocked firefighters snapped a few pictures of Air Bud and then got to work rescuing the pup. Marks says her dog was quite happy to be carried down the ladder.

Tigger luckily wasn’t hurt, just a little cold. But next time around Marks and her pup might be a little more cautious.

“I’m a little afraid to let her off-leash there now. Now that she knows she can climb it, but maybe she learned her lesson and she knows that she can’t get back down again.”

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Residents south of the Fraser take part in annual Polar Bear Swim

Bits and Bites from around the World > Creepy Aliens in South African waters; World's Cutest, or, at least, Roundest Dog

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‘Aliens’ crawling on coast spark panic online:

‘Is it safe to go into the water?’

By Ben Cost

December 14, 2022 1:45pm  Updated

There’s something in the water!

A South African man sparked hysteria among the online masses after they mistook his creepy pictures of dead plants for aliens emerging from the sea. His photos were shared to a South African Facebook group, where they’re currently scaring up hilarious responses, Kennedy News has reported.

“I was surprised [by the reaction],” Jan Vorster told Kennedy News of the extraterrestrial-seeming pics, which were snapped in his hometown of Still Bay, Western Cape. “I thought that people would have fun with it, but then it was very serious, some of it was extremely serious.”

He added, “A lot of people were scared of these alien-looking sea monsters. It was like ‘Jaws’ — is it safe to go into the water?”

An “aloe vera alien” on Still Bay Beach in South Africa.

Kennedy News and Media

The 62-year-old farm worker had taken pics of dead aloe vera plants — an evergreen succulent prized for its healing properties — that he’d lined up on the beach at sunrise, so that they evoked tentacled monsters invading the shore. He then posted the otherworldly pics to Facebook in an effort to raise awareness about environmental degradation.

“I thought I could use this as a metaphor for how people see these plants as aliens, but we are actually the two-legged aliens messing up their world,” Vorster described. “That was the idea.”

Unfortunately, Vorster’s eco-conscious photo op was taken literally after users thought that the expired desert flora were actually aliens making an intergalactic beachhead — reminiscent of Orson Welles’ hysteria-stirring “War of the Worlds” radio broadcast in 1938.

“Just wanted to cancel my vacation,” exclaimed one aghast viewer of the unorthodox eco-PSA. “Because of things like this, I don’t swim. I’m already scared of a shark.”

“It’s [just] a picture, I didn’t expect this to happen and for the reaction to be so big,” said photographer Jan Vorster.

Kennedy News and Media

“Please go back into the ocean,” pleaded another, while one petrified commenter wrote, “Are you serious? Holy moly… scary.”

“Never seen those before in all the years living on the coast,” declared another. “Maybe they’re only in Cape waters.”

“They look like some alien thing from War of the Worlds with Tom Cruise,” exclaimed one commenter, referencing the lanky invaders in Steven Spielberg’s 2005 sci-fi remake.

“People kept asking me when they [the creatures] were coming out, and if they were only coming out at night,” explained Vorster, who also re-created the eerie performance piece at a nearby river.

The aloe vera looked like aliens emerging from the sea like an interstellar Normandy Invasion.

Kennedy News and Media

In an attempt to dispel panic, the bewildered eco-warrior tried to explain that this was no SeaT.

However, his aloe vera-fication only made things worse as critics claimed he’d “misled them” and “should be crucified,” Vorster claimed.

“People Googled the aloe ferox [scientific name] and couldn’t put two and two together,” he lamented. “They kept saying, ‘Please help us, because this is not a plant. This can’t be a plant.’ “

Some online worrywarts even sent Vorster’s photos to an environmental scientist, who confirmed that the figures weren’t dangerous to humans.

"A lot of people were scared of these alien-looking sea monsters," said Vorster.

"It was like Jaws - is it safe to go into the water?"

Kennedy News and Media

Despite the backlash, the undaunted farmer hopes to create similar environmental PSAs in the future. “I’ve learned a lot, and I’m very motivated to continue with Aloe feroxes and keep focusing on nature-related issues,” Vorster declared.

This isn’t the first time a beached object has been mistaken for a monster.

Earlier this month, a baffled British beachcomber experienced vex on the beach after sharing pics of a bizarre beast they found washed ashore — with many viewers comparing it to the legendary Loch Ness monster.

‘World’s cutest dog’ is completely round:

‘When I have a bad day, I look at this dog’

By Emily Lefroy, NYPost

December 16, 2022 8:13pm  Updated

Toy poodle Mohu is extremely popular due to her round, fluffy shape

A toy poodle from Japan is having a ball with the unofficial title of “world’s cutest dog.”

Tens of thousands of adoring fans are lapping up the spherical, fluffy shape of Mohu, a 6-year-old pooch from Osaka.

Mohu is mature and moves at a slow pace — and she doesn’t quite understand people’s obsession, according to her owner, Nanae.

”I don’t know why she’s so popular,” Nanae told SWNS. “She always gets looked at on the street, and I get asked all the time what breed she is.”

Mohu is paws-itively prized on Instagram and TikTok, where she has rounded up about 120,000 followers between the two pages.

Mohu is adored by hundreds of thousands of people all around the world.

Nanae often posts photos and videos of Mohu posing in her home and playing with her toys. Her followers are always begging for more.

“This is Mohu. She just got a fresh haircut and is really feeling herself. Nothing makes her more confident than being completely round. 13/10,” the Twitter account WeRateDogs declared Wednesday.

“Dogrates, I feel we need to alert all scientists, Mohu might be the roundest thing on Earth,” one fan barked.

“I love her so much. I saw a video of her going into a tight li’l space where all her fluff disappeared, and it was like magic,” another howled.

“When I have a bad day, I look at this dog and feel much better,” one devotee confessed. “So cute!”

“I feel like all my life’s problems would go away if I had a dog like that,” agreed another, with a third professing, “I would forfeit all my assets to her.”