Miss Fidget.com

Some reports state these animals were shot on the same day, but I think they were shot a week apart judging from the bylines for the accounts I found online.

Vocabulary lesson for this post is ABC, or alien big cat, a large feline running wild in an area it’s not native to. ABC’s are common in the UK, less so in the USA.

Random photo of a serval being kept as a pet.  If you love servals don’t make them a pet because it’s a smart animal and will get loose and then get shot dead. Then you’ll feel like poo and get in trouble with the law.

Kansas Serval shown above.
Police shoot African cat on loose in Northland
By JAMES HART  |  The Kansas City Star  |   Posted on Fri, Nov. 21, 2008

When Kansas City police responded to a call Thursday about a possible bobcat prowling the Northland, officers soon realized they were dealing with something more exotic.

Try a serval — a wild African cat.

Though roughly the same size as Missouri bobcats, they have larger ears and longer tails. And, of course, they’re from another continent.

Using his rifle, an officer killed the serval Thursday morning in a field near Robin Hood Lane and Northwest Waukomis Drive.

Neighbors had called police that morning, reporting that something was prowling the area, Officer Darin Snapp said. Residents told police they were concerned about the safety of children playing outside.

State wildlife officials also had received calls in recent weeks about the creature and had been trying to trap it without success. Conservation department officials removed the cat’s body Thursday.

It’s not clear where the animal came from, or whether its owner — if located — would face criminal charges. Snapp said police didn’t know whether the serval was someone’s pet that had escaped or been released.

Servals have yellowish-brown coats with spots, and they usually reach 30 to 40 pounds. In Africa, the serval sometimes is mistaken for a cheetah or leopard.

The PA serval is shown above.

Exotic cat shot while attacking chickens
Philly.com  |  Thu, Nov. 27, 2008  |  By Nancy Petersen Inquirer Staff Writer
An exotic cat that had been roaming around Chester County’s exclusive Radnor Hunt country for the last month was shot and killed as it attacked a flock of chickens in their coop.

The cat, a native of Africa known as a serval, was killed by a farm manager on Tuesday evening after he received permission from authorities at the Pennsylvania Game Commission, according to a release from the agency.

Willistown Township Supervisor Robert Lange said that the animal was a pet owned by the Gansky family of Providence Road in the township.

A woman who answered the phone at the Gansky home and who would not give her name said that Jarrett Gansky, 20, was the pet’s owner. She said that one day the cat, which had been declawed, slipped out the door and took off. She said that Jarrett Gansky had no comment.

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Ohh, this is a juicy story. Creepy old cleric in olden times places a curse  “upon those who destroy and injure” the cathedral. Young Mr Shearer is arrested for “vandalising” and robbing the very same cathedral and dies in police custody. Autopsy reveals no cause of death for the 19 year old man. NOW THAT’S a a great ghost story in the making!

Dornoch may not look like much of a cathedral, but back in 1239 in Scottland it was sorta fabulous.

Man’s death in custody linked to ancient curse bishop’s hex to anyone who damaged cathedral
www.pressandjournal.co.uk  |  Published: 01/11/2008

The death in police custody of a man suspected of vandalising Dornoch Cathedral has led to speculation that a curse, said to have been laid in mediaeval times, has struck again.

Gilbert de Moravia, Bishop of Caithness, invoked a solemn curse “upon those who destroy and injure” the fabric of the 13th-century building in his deed declaring the foundation of the cathedral, which was completed in 1239.

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The saddest thing about this story is the number of unwanted children in the United States of America. One wonders what will become of the many kids whose parents want to ditch them, but can’t. Hey, bring back the orphanage.  No kid should be trapped in a broken, dysfunctional home where they are clearly not wanted, but it happens all the time. Historically orphanages and adoption have been part of society.

In ancient Greece there’s even records of court battles where birth children have protested, unsuccessfully, the inheritance given to adopted children. In Europe in the Middle Ages children were often given up for adoption for pre-set lengths of time and then re-united with their birth families. Neighborhoods called Orphan’s Corner got their name for a reason. Obviously the current child welfare system ain’t working and something big needs to change.

Neb. lawmakers OK age limit for safe-haven law
By NATE JENKINS   |  AP  |  Nov. 19 2008

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska lawmakers have approved adding a 30-day age limit to a safe-haven law that resulted in 35 children — including teenagers as old as 17 — being abandoned at state hospitals.

Gov. Dave Heineman was expected to sign the bill later Friday, and the law would go into effect at 12:01 a.m. Saturday. Nebraska will join 13 other states with a 30-day age cap. It has been the only state with a safe-haven law that lacks an age limit.

“I think this solves the immediate problem of adolescents being abandoned,” said Sen. Kent Rogert. “These kids are old enough to know they’re being dropped off, and that’s not good.”

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There’s an old kid’s record called Free to be You and Me and it has one song that urges “Don’t dress your cat in galoshes, if he’d prefer an overcoat.” Don’t leave your dog in a running car either. Read below for Killy the pit bulls rather long driving disaster and Bentley the Bo-Pei (groan) crashing thru a window. Killy’s was licensed but his owner not insured, oops. Bentley sounds like a juvenile delinquent with a troubled past.

Killy the Pit Bull, above.

Dog rolls van through St. James coffee shop window
BY SOPHIA CHANG  |  November 20, 2008  |  www.newsday.com

As his owner was signing up for an open mic showcase, a limelight-loving mutt climbed behind the wheel of a van and rolled it through the front window of a St. James coffee shop last night, police and the dog owner said.

Around 7:10 p.m., Bryan Maher, 60, of Port Jefferson, parked his 1992 Chevrolet van in front of the Cool Beanz coffee shop on North Country Road, police said. “Seeing it was cold, I left the motor running with the heat on” for his pooch, Bentley, Maher said.

As Maher signed up for the 8 p.m. showcase, the dog somehow jostled the gears and the van rolled into iron patio furniture outside the store and knocked out a window, police and store owner Patricia McCarthy said. There were no reported injuries, and police said charges were not filed. “That poor dog. He didn’t know what was going on,” McCarthy said.

Maher said he recently adopted the 5-year-old Bo-Pei (think boxer and Shar-Pei), which had been abused and mistreated.

McCarthy said Maher called his insurance company, and the window will be replaced. “Everyone’s asking, didn’t he have a license?” McCarthy said.

Arielle Brechisci contributed to this story.

No One Hurt After Dog Accidentally Takes Car For A Drive
Friday November 7, 2008  |  CityNews.ca Staff

Here’s a lesson for those who like to keep their vehicles clean – never take your dog with you when you’re at the car wash. A Pryor, Oklahoma man learned that lesson the hard way on Thursday, after he left his pooch inside his automobile while he was busy cleaning it at one of those do-it-yourself places.

The 70-lbs. pit bull named Killys (top left) got restless while his best friend was taking care of business, jumped in the front seat and somehow shifted the car into reverse. The vehicle then started moving, headed onto the highway, drove in a loop for a minute or two, and finally, mercifully came to a stop in one of the car wash’s automated lanes.

Witness Mark Walker was startled when he thought he saw a dog at the wheel. “I heard somebody holler. I walked out the front door and seen a car come off the four lane backwards and into the automatic bay. As soon as I looked around the corner I saw the dog in the car — just the dog!”

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