The RSPCA has released video showing fire crews hosing down angry bulls during efforts to free a heifer stuck fast between two tree trunks.
Firefighters were forced to direct water jets at four large limousin bulls to ensure rescuers’ safety during the unusual call-out in Alfreton, Derbyshire. Police contacted the RSPCA after receiving reports that the “weak and dehydrated” cow had its head trapped.
RSPCA animal welfare officer Andy Snowdon said: “I love all animals but I have to admit having four large randy bulls circling around me was quite an ‘interesting’ experience – and one I don’t want to repeat any time soon.”
Ferrets warning from baroness
Peers have been warned about the danger of ferrets which like to explore up people’s trouser legs.
Labour’s Baroness Farrington of Ribbleton issued the cautionary tale at question time in the Lords. To laughter from all sides, she told environment, food and rural affairs spokesman Lord Gardiner of Kimble that he ought to be careful dealing with ferrets. “We had a ferret belonging to my son, called Rikki-Tikki-Tavi, and she did enjoy trouser legs and it’s very important for people to take care.”
Lord Kimble said 68 ferrets had come into the country last year under the pet passport scheme and added: “I hope everyone has taken note of what you’ve said about trousers.” The exchanges came as peers protested about the failure of Eurostar to allow passengers to take dogs and other pets on board with them when travelling abroad.
Super-hero vision detected
It may not quite be X-ray vision, but it is the kind of ability that brings to mind superheroes or gifted mutants.
Humans have eyes that can sense a third property of light besides colour and brightness.
And a new study shows that humans are surprisingly good at detecting polarised light, something most commonly associated with bees and other insects, as well as octopuses and cuttlefish. Far back in our past it may have provided us with a navigational aid, scientists believe.
Today, it could point towards new methods of screening people at risk of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a leading cause of blindness. The research was led by Dr Shelby Temple, from the Ecology of Vision Group at the University of Bristol.
Lucky dip makes man $30,000
A man in the US who mistakenly bought the wrong lottery ticket is $30,000 (£19,000) wealthier.
Bob Sabo, of Easton, south-western Connecticut, says he did not want to wait in line to buy a lottery ticket at the Super Stop & Shop in Fairfield, so he decided to buy a ticket from a lottery vending machine – something he had previously never done.
Mr Sabo said he meant to buy two 20 dollar (£12) tickets, but says he did not have his glasses on and instead bought a 30 dollar (£19) ticket. When he got home, he discovered the ticket was a winner. The store will receive 300 dollars (£190) from CT Lottery for selling the top prize winning ticket.
Icy reception for ice cream firm
A Thai ice cream company owned by Unilever has apologised for using a derogatory term for gay men in a Facebook posting marking the US Supreme Court’s ruling on same-sex marriage.
The post on the Facebook page of Wall’s Thailand sparked an online uproar among Thais over the weekend, with some commentators calling it “low” and “discriminatory”.
The illustration, which was quickly removed, showed black bean-flavoured ice cream with the caption #LOVEWINS. “Black beans” is a demeaning slang term for gay men that originated from a famous paedophilia case.