Moose stomps man’s foot
in Alaska after he kicks her
Anchorage, Alaska (AP) – A man was injured north of Anchorage after a moose that he had just kicked stomped his foot in return, state officials said. KTVA-TV reported the man escaped major injuries in the encounter Thursday with the moose and her calf. “It sounds like the moose were on a trail and in this case, it sounds like the guy was trying to go through them,” State Department of Fish and Game spokesman Ken Marsh said. “That’s never a good idea.” The two moose left the area after the man had his foot stomped, said Alaska Troopers spokeswoman Megan Peters. “I am not a biologist, but as a lifelong Alaskan I would advise people not to go around kicking moose,” Peters said. Moose have vast leg strength, Marsh said. “If you get into a kicking contest with a moose, guess who’s going to win?” he said. South-central Alaska has seen a number of violent incidents involving moose this spring, including a man who had a moose swipe at him with its hoof while feeding it and a cocker spaniel attacked by a moose in an Anchorage yard. Marsh said moose sightings are on the rise as females prepare for calving season in mid-May.
Police investigate reports
of ‘zombie’ raccoons
Youngstown, Ohio (AP) – Police are investigating reports of “zombie-like” raccoons in northeast Ohio. WKBN-TV reports Youngstown police have received more than a dozen calls in the past three weeks about raccoons acting strangely in the daytime. Photographer Robert Coggeshall says he was playing with his dogs outside his home last week when one such raccoon approached them. Coggeshall says the animal would stand on its hind legs, show its teeth and fall over backward. The raccoon Coggeshall saw and 14 others police responded to were euthanized. The state Department of Natural Resources says the animals were likely suffering from distemper, not rabies. The viral disease causes coughing, tremors and seizures and leads raccoons to lose their fear of humans. Authorities are asking residents to report raccoons behaving unusually to their local police station.
Cookies that made day care staff
feel high were drug-free
Bangor, Maine (AP) – Officials say cookies dropped off at a Maine day care center that staff members complained made them feel high contained no illicit substances. About a dozen staff members at Watch Me Shine day care in Bangor reported feeling intoxicated Feb. 14 after they ate Valentine’s Day cookies dropped off by a parent. The Bangor Daily News reports police seized the remaining cookies for testing. Sgt. Wade Betters said Monday that none of the cookies tested positive for controlled substances. Police don’t know what caused the staff to feel funny and say no charges are pending. The day care now prohibits outside food for children and staff, and no children ate the cookies.
Tiger reported running through
streets of New York – or not
New York (AP) – A false report of a tiger in the streets of New York has caused a social media frenzy. WNBC says the New York Police Department got a call around 8:30 a.m. Thursday about a tiger in Harlem. People on Twitter described a notification from the Citizen app that said police were responding to unconfirmed reports of a loose tiger running around the street. Shortly thereafter, police confirmed that there was indeed a wild-animal sighting. It was a raccoon.
Minnesota firehouse opens doors
during blizzard for prom
Forest Lake, Minn. (AP) – Firefighters came to the rescue for a group of Minnesota high school students when a blizzard struck during their prom. The Forest Lake Fire Department opened its firehouse for three hours on Saturday so the students could pose for prom pictures. With as much as 15 inches (38 centimeters) of snow in the forecast, the students couldn’t take photos outside for what they called #BlizzardProm. The students posed in their formal clothes on firetrucks and in the firehouse.
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