Bears Eat Monkey in Front of Zoo Visitors
Monday, May 15, 2006 5:12 PM EDT
The Associated Press
AMSTERDAM, Netherlands (AP) Bears killed and ate a monkey in a Dutch zoo in front of horrified visitors, witnesses and the zoo said Monday. In the incident Sunday at the Beekse Bergen Safari Park, several Sloth bears chased the Barbary macaque into an electric fence, where it was stunned.
It recovered and fled onto a wooden structure, where one bear pursued and mauled it to death.
The park confirmed the killing in a statement, saying: "In an area where Sloth bears, great apes and Barbary macaques have coexisted peacefully for a long time, the harmony was temporarily disturbed during opening hours on Sunday."
"Of course the habitats here in the safari park are arranged in such a way that one animal almost never kills another, but they are and remain wild animals," it said.
Witness Marco Berelds posted a detailed report on the incident, including photos, on a Dutch Web site. He said one Sloth bear tried unsuccessfully to shake the monkey loose after it took refuge on the structure, built of crossing horizontal and vertical poles.
Ignoring attempts by keepers to distract it, the bear climbed onto a horizontal pole, and, standing stretched on two legs, "used its sharp canines to pull the macaque, which was shrieking and resisting, from its perch."
The bear then brought the animal to a concrete den, where three bears ate it.
The zoo said it "usually wasn't possible" for keepers to intervene when an animal killed another.
The park plans now to move the Barbary macaques which are large monkeys but often inaccurately called "Barbary Apes" to another part of the park, it said.
Calif. Woman Has 14-Pound Preemie Baby
Friday, May 5, 2006 5:36 PM EDT
The Associated Press
MANTECA, Calif. (AP) A baby girl, who had grown so much inside her mother that she had to be delivered one month early, was born much heavier than average at 14 pounds.
Olivia, born on March 22 to Brandy Womack and Zack Patrick, is finally home after nearly a month spent in a hospital where doctors monitored her underdeveloped lungs and heart.
"Her newborn diapers didn't fit her," Womack told KXTV. "We had to take everything back and get it upgraded."
Medical staff decided Womack should deliver her daughter before full term when a sonogram in the seventh month showed she already weighed about 11 pounds, nine ounces. Doctors estimated that if Womack had carried Olivia for the full nine months, the baby could have reached about 16 pounds.
"The doctor said because she was so big already, they wanted to get her out," Womack said.
The baby was delivered by c-section, and doctors who have examined her found no medical conditions that explained her size.
But now that she's out, Olivia's growth spurt seems to have slowed down. Unlike most newborns, who gain four to eight ounces a week during their first month, she's added only three ounces since birth.
Her parents said that as long as she's healthy, they're happy.
"I hope she stays this size for a while," Womack said.
Man With Prosthetic Legs, Deaf Man Brawl
Friday, May 5, 2006 9:16 PM EDT
The Associated Press
VALPARAISO, Ind. (AP) Two men who had driven around several towns for hours after meeting in a bar ended up fighting after one of the men couldn't communicate directions clearly to the driver.
Kent Hisey, 52, became frustrated by the difficulty of James Mills, who is deaf, in communicating directions, Valparaiso police said. They had driven from the Playboy Lounge in New Chicago to Portage, then Hobart where the 46-year-old Mills lives and finally to Valparaiso communities spread across two northwest Indiana counties about 30 miles southeast of Chicago.
Hisey, who has two prosthetic legs, stopped his car at the Porter County Airport, got out and used his walker to go around to the passenger side, where he grabbed Mills to pull him from the car, police said.
Mills allegedly pushed Hisey to the ground, causing him to hit his head.
Paramedics arrived Thursday about 1:30 a.m. to treat Hisey's lacerations and take him to Porter Hospital. Police wrote a note to Mills informing him he was being arrested on a battery charge.
Officers conducted a field sobriety test on Hisey. His blood-alcohol level registered 0.16 percent. Under Indiana law, the threshold for drunken driving is 0.08 percent.
Both Hisey and Mills were taken to the Porter County Jail, where they were being held Friday morning.
3,738 Mothers Set Breast-Feeding Record
Saturday, May 6, 2006 9:16 AM EDT
The Associated Press
By The Associated Press
MANILA, Philippines (AP) Nearly 4,000 mothers set a world record this week for the largest number of women simultaneously breast-feeding their babies in the same place, organizers said.
Manila Mayor Lito Atienza, whose city is one of the event's organizers, said 3,738 mothers simultaneously breast-fed their babies for at least one minute, breaking the Guinness World Record.
The result will be submitted to Guinness for evaluation.
The United Nations Children's Fund said the previous record was held by the City of Berkeley, California, where 1,135 mothers simultaneous breast-fed babies for a minute on Aug. 3, 2002.
The event was also held to raise awareness about the benefits of breast-feeding, organizers said.
Dr. Nicholas Alipui, UNICEF representative to the Philippines, said breast-feeding can help curb malnutrition in children under two years old, provide children with antibodies to fight diseases and boost the country's economy because families save on infant formula.
..........
Monday, May 15, 2006 5:12 PM EDT
The Associated Press
AMSTERDAM, Netherlands (AP) Bears killed and ate a monkey in a Dutch zoo in front of horrified visitors, witnesses and the zoo said Monday. In the incident Sunday at the Beekse Bergen Safari Park, several Sloth bears chased the Barbary macaque into an electric fence, where it was stunned.
It recovered and fled onto a wooden structure, where one bear pursued and mauled it to death.
The park confirmed the killing in a statement, saying: "In an area where Sloth bears, great apes and Barbary macaques have coexisted peacefully for a long time, the harmony was temporarily disturbed during opening hours on Sunday."
"Of course the habitats here in the safari park are arranged in such a way that one animal almost never kills another, but they are and remain wild animals," it said.
Witness Marco Berelds posted a detailed report on the incident, including photos, on a Dutch Web site. He said one Sloth bear tried unsuccessfully to shake the monkey loose after it took refuge on the structure, built of crossing horizontal and vertical poles.
Ignoring attempts by keepers to distract it, the bear climbed onto a horizontal pole, and, standing stretched on two legs, "used its sharp canines to pull the macaque, which was shrieking and resisting, from its perch."
The bear then brought the animal to a concrete den, where three bears ate it.
The zoo said it "usually wasn't possible" for keepers to intervene when an animal killed another.
The park plans now to move the Barbary macaques which are large monkeys but often inaccurately called "Barbary Apes" to another part of the park, it said.
Calif. Woman Has 14-Pound Preemie Baby
Friday, May 5, 2006 5:36 PM EDT
The Associated Press
MANTECA, Calif. (AP) A baby girl, who had grown so much inside her mother that she had to be delivered one month early, was born much heavier than average at 14 pounds.
Olivia, born on March 22 to Brandy Womack and Zack Patrick, is finally home after nearly a month spent in a hospital where doctors monitored her underdeveloped lungs and heart.
"Her newborn diapers didn't fit her," Womack told KXTV. "We had to take everything back and get it upgraded."
Medical staff decided Womack should deliver her daughter before full term when a sonogram in the seventh month showed she already weighed about 11 pounds, nine ounces. Doctors estimated that if Womack had carried Olivia for the full nine months, the baby could have reached about 16 pounds.
"The doctor said because she was so big already, they wanted to get her out," Womack said.
The baby was delivered by c-section, and doctors who have examined her found no medical conditions that explained her size.
But now that she's out, Olivia's growth spurt seems to have slowed down. Unlike most newborns, who gain four to eight ounces a week during their first month, she's added only three ounces since birth.
Her parents said that as long as she's healthy, they're happy.
"I hope she stays this size for a while," Womack said.
Man With Prosthetic Legs, Deaf Man Brawl
Friday, May 5, 2006 9:16 PM EDT
The Associated Press
VALPARAISO, Ind. (AP) Two men who had driven around several towns for hours after meeting in a bar ended up fighting after one of the men couldn't communicate directions clearly to the driver.
Kent Hisey, 52, became frustrated by the difficulty of James Mills, who is deaf, in communicating directions, Valparaiso police said. They had driven from the Playboy Lounge in New Chicago to Portage, then Hobart where the 46-year-old Mills lives and finally to Valparaiso communities spread across two northwest Indiana counties about 30 miles southeast of Chicago.
Hisey, who has two prosthetic legs, stopped his car at the Porter County Airport, got out and used his walker to go around to the passenger side, where he grabbed Mills to pull him from the car, police said.
Mills allegedly pushed Hisey to the ground, causing him to hit his head.
Paramedics arrived Thursday about 1:30 a.m. to treat Hisey's lacerations and take him to Porter Hospital. Police wrote a note to Mills informing him he was being arrested on a battery charge.
Officers conducted a field sobriety test on Hisey. His blood-alcohol level registered 0.16 percent. Under Indiana law, the threshold for drunken driving is 0.08 percent.
Both Hisey and Mills were taken to the Porter County Jail, where they were being held Friday morning.
3,738 Mothers Set Breast-Feeding Record
Saturday, May 6, 2006 9:16 AM EDT
The Associated Press
By The Associated Press
MANILA, Philippines (AP) Nearly 4,000 mothers set a world record this week for the largest number of women simultaneously breast-feeding their babies in the same place, organizers said.
Manila Mayor Lito Atienza, whose city is one of the event's organizers, said 3,738 mothers simultaneously breast-fed their babies for at least one minute, breaking the Guinness World Record.
The result will be submitted to Guinness for evaluation.
The United Nations Children's Fund said the previous record was held by the City of Berkeley, California, where 1,135 mothers simultaneous breast-fed babies for a minute on Aug. 3, 2002.
The event was also held to raise awareness about the benefits of breast-feeding, organizers said.
Dr. Nicholas Alipui, UNICEF representative to the Philippines, said breast-feeding can help curb malnutrition in children under two years old, provide children with antibodies to fight diseases and boost the country's economy because families save on infant formula.
..........
VIEW 13 of 13 COMMENTS
faithe:
boy u write a lot! also the one eyed cat thing is pretty freaky, but i cant stop looking at it! 
faithe:
you know im only requesting your friendship cos u told me the whole story about the cat 