Hero cat honoured for saving woman's life

Chryl Fields and Meskie, her calico angora cat, was honoured by global pet food company for waking up its owner so she could escape from a fire last summer. (CNW Group/Purina Animal Hall of Fame)

Meskie, a calico angora cat, has been honoured by a global pet food company for waking up its owner so she could escape from a fire last summer.

Chyrl Fields, 67, of Murray Corner, near Cape Tormentine, fell asleep in her reclining chair on Aug. 8 and woke up suddenly when her 17-year-old cat pounced on her stomach.

"Chyrl understood from Meskie's peculiar behaviour that something was wrong and followed her into the kitchen where she noticed that the front of her house was on fire," according to a statement.

Fields was able to get out of her house, with her cat, before the fire became too intense.

Fields said she owes her life to Meskie.

Meskie was one of four animals inducted into the Purina Animal Hall of Fame.

"Every year, these stories not only capture our hearts, but the hearts of the entire country," said Susan Molenda, the vice-president of Nestlé Purina PetCare. 

"This year's Inductees overcame incredible obstacles such as a vicious black bear attack, a partially frozen river, a house fire and a dangerous criminal — literally putting their lives in harm's way to keep humans safe."

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Goats cause California traffic jam

Video

CBC News Posted: May 06, 2014 9:10 AM ET Last Updated: May 06, 2014 9:10 AM ET

Drivers in Oakland, Calif., spent an extra 30 minutes on a freeway on Saturday because a herd of goats wandered onto the road.

California Highway Patrol officials said the goats were being used to remove brush along the highway when they wandered onto the freeway and impeded traffic.

The jam was cleared up within a half-hour.

Watch video of the traffic jam in the player above.

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B.C. hiker films possible sasquatch in mountains near Squamish

Video

YouTube video of possible Sasquatch sighting near Squamish, B.C. getting thousands of hits

CBC News Posted: May 03, 2014 4:04 PM PT Last Updated: May 03, 2014 11:13 PM PT

A B.C. man who claims he filmed a possible sasquatch while hiking in the Tantalus Range near Squamish, B.C. two years ago is getting thousands of hits on YouTube after recently uploading the footage.

The video shows a black dot of a figure apparently moving up the slope of a snow covered mountain.

"I can't see it very well," Lamont says into the camera lens. "It's this little black dot walking in the middle of the snow in the middle of nowhere."

The video is intriguing because the shape does appear to be moving up the mountain.

"If that's human why would you walk up that ridge or that snow line?" Lamont asks. "Why would he not just go straight down?"

"Good thing we brought beers," Lamont jokes. "Maybe we can lure him over here. I don't know how high we are, but we're probably close to 7,000 feet and this guy's just scampering up snow lines like it's no big deal."

It's been suggested the figure is a bear, possibly upright against the slope. 

Bear, Sasquatch or somehow staged? What do you think?

On mobile? Click here to watch Sasquatch video

On mobile? Click here for map of Tantalus Mountain range

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Hair extensions for horses hot sellers for Sask. entrepreneur

A Rockglen, Sask. woman says horse tail extensions are getting lots of attention across Canada and the United States. (Submitted to CBC)

Celebrities like Lady Gaga and Cher use them — and now horses do, too.

They're hair extensions.

The equine version being sold by a Saskatchewan woman attach to the horse's tails.

"The main purpose is the show horses, " Michele Hansen said. "It kind of balances a horse out when you see them. And [when] the judge looks at them, it gives them that extra flash of 'Hey, look at me.'"

The extensions are mostly used in show horse competitions, but Hansen says there are other reasons as well.

"I've done some tails for some rescue horses, their horses hardly have any hair and it's sort of a therapeutic tail," she said. "They're a little bit lighter, but they're able to swat the flies away."

Hansen says she's been selling her products across Canada and into the United States. She also makes hair extensions for cows.

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Bear cub 'Boo Boo' spared after biting U.S. college students

A two-month-old bear cub that bit and scratched at least 18 students at a Missouri college poses no rabies threat and won't be killed, school officials said on Friday.

The college earlier said that the cub, named Boo Boo, would have to be euthanized in order to test it for the disease.

The cub was brought to the campus of Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, on Sunday along with some other animals from a petting zoo to help students relax before final exams, the university said in a statement.

Health officials previously said they couldn't rule out the possibility the cub had rabies, the university said.

If it tested positive, students would have been advised to get vaccinated for rabies, a life-threatening viral disease.

Late on Friday afternoon, the university issued a news release stating that local, state and federal health officials determined that Boo Boo posed no rabies threat and that students will need no treatments.

"We are thrilled that this very unfortunate situation has come to the best possible conclusion for everyone involved - our students, our community and the bear cub," said the release issued by university spokeswoman Susan Killenberg McGinn.

Animals from the local petting zoo have been brought to the private university in St. Louis for several years during exam time, but Boo Boo was included this year without the school's knowledge, administrators said earlier.

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Angry beaver delays traffic, chases onlookers

An angry beaver was roaming around Miramichi on Tuesday, creating traffic delays and chasing onlookers.

Jim O'Neill was driving his taxi when he noticed a man being chased by a beaver off King George Highway on Tuesday.

"You look out the corner of your eye and see a beaver backing somebody up the driveway," he said.

So, O'Neill stopped the cab and took out his camera.

Snapping a few pictures, O'Neill got about 2.5 metres away from the beaver before it turned on him.

"Slapped his tail on the driveway, slapped his front feet on the ground. He came on," he said.

"So I backed up to try it again and jeez he got quite aggressive. He was camera shy."

The rodent, possibly displaced from its home due to recent flooding, spent most of Tuesday afternoon roaming through town causing delays in traffic.

Miramichi Police Force were also called about the beaver as it was roaming around the northern city.

Sgt. Ed Arbeau said the Miramichi police deal with animals on a daily basis but this was a first.

"The damn thing was lost, it was going down the street. We didn't do anything, we showed up and seen what it was," Arbeau said.

"The guys left it alone, told the citizens to leave it alone and it went on its way to where it was going."

Although quite rare, beavers have been known to attack people.

Arbeau said it's possible the large rodent had been provoked during its time in the city. 

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Hair extensions for horses hot sellers for Sask. entrepreneur

A Rockglen, Sask. woman says horse tail extensions are getting lots of attention across Canada and the United States. (Submitted to CBC)

Celebrities like Lady Gaga and Cher use them — and now horses do, too.

They're hair extensions.

The equine version being sold by a Saskatchewan woman attach to the horse's tails.

"The main purpose is the show horses, " Michele Hansen said. "It kind of balances a horse out when you see them. And [when] the judge looks at them, it gives them that extra flash of 'Hey, look at me.'"

The extensions are mostly used in show horse competitions, but Hansen says there are other reasons as well.

"I've done some tails for some rescue horses, their horses hardly have any hair and it's sort of a therapeutic tail," she said. "They're a little bit lighter, but they're able to swat the flies away."

Hansen says she's been selling her products across Canada and into the United States. She also makes hair extensions for cows.

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Waterloo woman collects 2,500 Roll up the Rim wins for homeless

When Cec Joyal noticed she had a winning cup in Tim Hortons' 'Roll up the Rim' contest seven years ago, she decided to give it to a homeless person instead of claiming the prize of free food for herself.

Joyal wondered if she could multiply this act of kindness and began collecting winning cups whenever Tim Hortons held the promotion every year.

This year has been particularly successful after her project gained a lot of attention in the local media, she said

"It just spread like wildfire, the most successful campaign to date," said Joyal.

So far, Joyal estimates she's collected over 2,500 winning rims and over 70 Tim Hortons gift cards.

"Someone actually sent me a rim that won a $100 gift card," recalls Joyal.

Joyal says cups have come in from all over Waterloo Region, Guelph, Hamilton and the Greater Toronto Area. A number of Catholic schools also adopted the campaign during Lent.

"Everybody wants to help, but maybe don't really feel comfortable enough approaching a homeless person or don't want to give a homeless person money," she said.

"This is just such an easy thing to do and it really has an impact."

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Angry beaver delays traffic, chases onlookers

An angry beaver was roaming around Miramichi on Tuesday, creating traffic delays and chasing onlookers.

Jim O'Neill was driving his taxi when he noticed a man being chased by a beaver off King George Highway on Tuesday.

"You look out the corner of your eye and see a beaver backing somebody up the driveway," he said.

So, O'Neill stopped the cab and took out his camera.

Snapping a few pictures, O'Neill got about 2.5 metres away from the beaver before it turned on him.

"Slapped his tail on the driveway, slapped his front feet on the ground. He came on," he said.

"So I backed up to try it again and jeez he got quite aggressive. He was camera shy."

The rodent, possibly displaced from its home due to recent flooding, spent most of Tuesday afternoon roaming through town causing delays in traffic.

Miramichi Police Force were also called about the beaver as it was roaming around the northern city.

Sgt. Ed Arbeau said the Miramichi police deal with animals on a daily basis but this was a first.

"The damn thing was lost, it was going down the street. We didn't do anything, we showed up and seen what it was," Arbeau said.

"The guys left it alone, told the citizens to leave it alone and it went on its way to where it was going."

Although quite rare, beavers have been known to attack people.

Arbeau said it's possible the large rodent had been provoked during its time in the city. 

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Can a bigger hole make golf cool again?

Can bigger golf holes bring bigger crowds out to play? At least one B.C. golf course hopes so.

With the the golfing population aging, many golf courses are looking for ways to bring in younger players, who seem reluctant to take up the game.

The game, which was invented by the Scots more than 500 years ago, has a reputation with the younger generation as expensive and time-consuming.

Younger folks just "don't think it's cool," says Doug Hawley, managing director of the The Redwoods Golf Course in Langley, B.C.

"Golf hasn't really grown," says Hawley. "It hasn't really declined. It's just staying stable."

An eight-inch golf hole is larger than the standard four and a quarter inches. (Margaret Gallagher)

Many like Hawley say the game can also be frustrating, trying to sink the ball in to the time-honoured 4¼ inch hole, particularly if you're a beginner.

That's why the Redwoods is experimenting with introducing eight-inch holes every Tuesday, starting April 29.

"If you can take out some of the frustration out the game ... the more relaxed they are, the more they'll enjoy their day, and the more they'll want to come back," says Hawley.

Golf courses around North America are experimenting with bigger holes — some up to 15 inches — in an attempt to bring more players to the game. It's just one of many strategies coming into play to widen golf's demographic.

Joan Probert oversees the three full-size golf courses run by the Vancouver Park Board, as well as their three pitch and putt courses.

"I think that every industry needs to look at what happens when the baby boomers age," she says.

Joan Probert says the Vancouver Park Board is hoping a new golf app will help draw more users to the civic golf courses. (Margaret Gallagher)

Vancouver's civic golf courses are among the region's busiest, but Probert says they're not taking anything for granted.

"We just need to be on top of looking at new and different opportunities to attract different demographics to the game."

These strategies include nine-hole play options, special evening and afternoon rates, pitch and putt workshops for women and youth, and a new golf app.

But Probert says purists need not worry because they have no plans to experiment with larger holes.

The standard four and a quarter inch golf hole can lead to frustration and long games, especially for beginners. (Margaret Gallagher)

The Redwoods is the only B.C. golf course testing the larger holes — so far.

Hawley says he expects the Redwoods course to be twice as busy as usual on what they're billing "8-inch Tuesdays."

As for criticisms that the game loses something with the bigger holes, Hawley disagrees, saying the essential pleasures of a round of golf remain the same. 

"It is the same. I'm out here. The birds are singing. It's a nice day. I got to hear that sound (of the ball landing in the hole), and I'm connected to the person next to me."

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