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'I can't leave him': Sask. tow truck driver rescues moose trapped in ice
Clint Gottinger put all calls on hold to rescue the animal
"Bring some blankets out — I've got a moose."
Clint Gottinger hadn't envisioned having to say those eight words to his wife after a long day's work last Saturday. But there he was, pulling up to their family home with a cold, tired moose on the deck of his tow truck.
Gottinger, who owns Rebel Towing, said he was on his way to do a couple of tow jobs around 5 p.m. CST.
His plans quickly changed.
He spotted a moose that had fallen through some ice not far from his home in Kelvington, Sask., about 200 kilometres east of Saskatoon.
"I can't leave him," Gottinger remembered thinking. "Everyone has to wait. This is a priority."
He turned his truck around and backed up as close as he could to the beleaguered animal.
His plan was to slide the deck of the tow truck down and use a soft sling to pull the moose out. The animal appeared leery, but was also clearly exhausted.
Gottinger took his sling and threw it around the moose's neck area.
"I started wenching and towing. He was kind of helping a bit," he said.
The moose's bottom half was the first to pop out of the ice. Gottinger said some neighbours showed up to lend a hand.
"We got the sling around his butt and popped him right out and then onto the deck," he said.
He said the moose was out by around 5:30 p.m. Gottinger then took it home so it could rest and warm up. He phoned his wife on the way.
"Once I pulled up there, this moose sitting on the deck, she [came] running out with blankets," he said.
Gottinger set the moose down on the pile of blankets, wrapping one of them over it, before leaving it to recover. He said he would come check on the moose periodically. The moose would even let him give some ear and cheek scratches.
The moose finally stood on its feet around 11 p.m.
"I thought, well, I'll see if I can walk up and scratch his cheek again. But he kind of grunted and put his leg up."
He said the moose stuck around his house all of Sunday, lingering just across the road. It finally left Monday morning.
Gottinger took to social media to share his encounter. He named the moose "Rebel" after his towing company.
The post racked up more than 1,000 likes and 100 comments.
"It's a happy story," Gottinger said.
"Everyone needs a happy story."
'A very good chance of recovery'
Dr. Ryan Brook, a professor in the college of agriculture and bio resources at the University of Saskatchewan, said higher temperatures and the fact the moose is still young make for a higher chance of it surviving, but it's not out of the woods yet.
Brook said that when a moose goes through a traumatic event, it can be prone to "capture myopathy." The often fatal metabolic condition can result in severe muscle damage, kidney failure and heart failure, and show up within hours or weeks after an incident occurs.
"I'm sure it was quite a traumatic experience for the moose, and so I think there's certainly gonna be a recovery," Brook said.
He said the moose lingering near Gottinger's home in the aftermath is not unusual. He said traumatized moose will often stay in an area for days at a time to rehydrate, rest, and recover mentally and physically.
"They will often find some kind of heavy hiding cover. They might duck underneath the big spruce tree or or hit a big clump of aspen forest and bed down in there," he said.
Brook said that when a moose does recover, releasing it back into the wild is the most dangerous part.
"That's when they get back on their feet and that's when they, if they feel like they're in danger, then they can certainly, moose will attack," he said.
Brook said it's important to call wildlife experts, especially when dealing with larger animals like a moose. He said experts can ensure a safe capture, keep the animal calm and prevent conditions like capture myopathy, giving animals the greatest chance at survival.
As for Rebel the moose, Brook is optimistic.
"As long as it's able to drink and find something to eat and rest, my sense is there's probably a very good chance of recovery for it."
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That whale became stuck again, and IIRC freed again (?), then stuck again (?). Now probably not surviving.
What's "funny" (not really) is that in the early days of that drama it was a big news story. Blessed are those who don't have bigger probs...thing is just, now there are some crazies trying to blame local politicians and scientists for the whale's bad condition/near-death. All with death threats against those politicians and scientists on top
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Whale swims for freedom after big German rescue effort on Baltic coast
A humpback whale has freed itself from a sandbank near the German coastal city of Lübeck, after a series of rescue attempts.
Rescue teams say the whale is now swimming in deeper water 300m (1,00ft) off the coast in Lübeck Bay and they are hopeful it will then head towards the wider sea.
The humpback, which is about 12-15m (40-50ft) in length, was first spotted stranded near the resort of Timmendorfer Strand last Monday. Several attempts were made to free the humpback during the week.
Biologist Robert Marc Lehmann said the whale, which is 12-15m (40-50ft) in length, had built up its strength overnight and freed itself.
Reports at first light that the whale had swum off the sandbank were confirmed by Stephanie Gross from the Institute for Terrestrial and Aquatic Wildlife Research, who said a colleague was in an inflatable boat alongside the mammal.
Eventually, two diggers were deployed on Thursday to dredge a channel for the whale to swim into deeper water, and rescue teams worked late into the day under floodlights to save it.
By early evening hopes had risen that the humpback had become more active.
Lehmann, who had tried to coax the whale into the channel on Thursday, said the mammal was not yet safe and it was crucial that it remained in open water and eventually swam out into the wider Baltic Sea.
Stephanie Gross said early on Friday that the whale was being escorted by several boats including the coast guard.
Rescuers have been unable to fit a tracker to its skin because of its poor condition, and a piece of netting is lodged in its mouth.
However, local mayor Sven Partheil-Böhnke said he was delighted that the humpback had managed to free itself and experts were optimistic that it would continue to swim north in the direction of Denmark.
Even if the whale reaches the Baltic, rescuers believe it needs to swim on into the North Sea and then the Atlantic before it reaches its natural habitat.
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Father, 99, and son, 80, feast on free oysters after cashing in on decades-old restaurant promise
A sign posted in a local oyster house inspired Jimmy, 80, and Jim, 99, to make a lifelong goal
For Jimmy Rush, 80, and his father, Jim Rush, 99, it was a delectable deal too good to pass up — even if it meant waiting more than half a century to claim.
Since 1972, Jimmy, his younger brother, and their dad, would dine at Wintzell’s Oyster House in downtown Mobile, Ala., after Mardi Gras festivities — a tradition that continued even after the family moved to Florida.
Inside the restaurant, the walls were covered with dozens of quirky signs. But one in particular caught their attention: “Free oysters to any man 80 years old accompanied by his father.”
“We kept asking, ‘Was this sign for real?’ and they said yes,” Jimmy told As It Happens host Nil Köksal. “We said, ‘Has anybody ever done it?’ And they said no.”
That was when the Rush family began to hatch a plan to become the first father-and-son pair to claim the offer.
It required patience, and a willingness to play the long (long) game. But 54 years later, on Jimmy’s 80th birthday last month, he and his father finally walked into Wintzell’s Oyster House to feast.
“Most people read that sign behind the bar and laugh,” read a Feb. 23 Facebook post on Wintzell’s Oyster House’s page. “But tonight, Jimmy Rush walked in on his 80th birthday with his father, James Rush, 99, right beside him, and turned one of Witzell’s rarest traditions into a real-life milestone.”
“The Rush family has been part of this place for years, and they didn’t come alone,” the post continued. “A full room of friends, shared memories — and yes, oysters on the house, true to our founder’s promise.”
Oliver Wintzell, who founded the restaurant in 1938, likely never imagined someone would actually take him up on the offer, said current owner Bob Omainsky. The walls have long been decorated with humorous and thought-provoking signs, and in this case, the message was intended as a joke.
“You got to remember, this is a long time ago, and now people are living a little bit longer,” said Omainsky. “[Oliver] probably thought it was something that his restaurant would never be required to fulfill, but I can tell you, we couldn’t be happier to be the ones to do it … the Rush’s are great people.”
Omainsky says throughout the years leading up to Jimmy's 80th birthday, he and his father called the restaurant occasionally to make sure the promotion was still valid.
After finally claiming the offer, the family celebrated with a birthday bash at the restaurant.
“We had around 60 people there for his birthday party, which was the greatest party we’ve ever had,” said Jim.
And if you’re wondering whether oysters taste better when they’re free, Jimmy says the answer is obvious.
“Yes of course. We’ve been back three times and have had free oysters.”
Jimmy says the restaurant has promised that as long as he is 80 and he brings his father along, the offer still stands. That’s good news for Jim, who credits a diet rich in seafood for keeping him healthy at 99.
“I’ve only been sick twice in my life, once when I was five and once when I was 97,” said Jim who will turn 100 years old in July. “I don’t see, but I hear fairly well, and that’s about it — and I don’t take any medications at all.”
If all goes well, Omainsky says the Rush family might get to repeat the moment next year. Jim has another son who will turn 80 in the fall of 2027, he says.
“So we’re really looking forward to having Mr. Rush to be able to celebrate this twice,” said Omainsky.
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Sleepy owl found resting among items on a New York antique store shelf
DURHAM, N.Y. (AP) — Shoppers in upstate New York earlier this month turned up a rare find while perusing a local antique store this month: tucked next to a cookie jar made in the shape of a chicken was a live owl resting peacefully on a shelf.
The state Department of Environmental Conservation said Friday that the incident happened on Feb. 21 in the hamlet of East Durham, about 127 miles (204 kilometers) north of Manhattan.
The agency said customers at The Market Place had spotted “something extremely lifelike” on one of the shelves and alerted store staff.
Environmental conservation police officers arrived to find a brown-and-white owl perched on a shelf with its eyes firmly shut.
The department said officers gently cradled the sleeping owl to remove it from the store, and then released it into a wooded area, where it flew into a nearby tree.
The bird, an eastern screech owl, is nocturnal and typically nests in tree cavities.
It is not immediately clear how it got inside the store. An email was sent to the store’s owners on Friday.
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Surprise 4-legged Olympic competitor wows cross-country fans
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A dog wanders on the ski trail during the women's team cross-country free sprint qualification event of the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics in Lago di Tesero, Italy, on Wednesday. Anne-Christine Poujoulat / AFP via Getty Images
LAGO DI TESERO, Italy — A local dog made a bid for Olympic glory Wednesday morning, breaking out of his doghouse and onto the homestretch of the cross-country ski course in the middle of a race.
Two-year-old Nazgul was quickly collared by race officials and returned unharmed to his home at a nearby bed-and-breakfast, but not before his genial presence lit up television sets and social media channels around the world — even if he perplexed some of the athletes who encountered him.
"I was like, 'Am I hallucinating?" said Tena Hadzic, a 21-year-old Croatian skier who encountered the dog on her trip down the homestretch. "I don't know what I should do, because maybe he could attack me, bite me."
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A dog later identified as a local named Nazgul sprints across the snow at the Winter Games. Anne-Christine Poujoulat / AFP via Getty Images / AFP via Getty Images
Race organizers did not make Nazgul available for questions after his capture.
But his owners are related to an event official, who connected them with NPR for a brief interview while they were driving to watch an Olympic biathlon race at another venue.
"He was crying this morning more than normal because he was seeing us leaving — and I think he just wanted to follow us," said the owner, who was granted anonymity because of the intense media scrutiny of Nazgul's escape. "He always looks for people."
Nazgul is a "stubborn, but very sweet" Czechoslovakian wolfdog, the owner said.
Nazgul's crossing of the finish line even earned him an Olympic photo finish with commentators wondering whether his nose or paw constitued his "official" finish time.
Nazgul's saunter down the homestretch didn't appear to have a significant impact on the cross-country team sprint: A preliminary qualifying round was unfolding at the time, and the top medal contenders had already finished.
But Hadzic, the Croatian, said her initial reaction likely did cost her "some seconds."
"It's not that big deal, because I'm not fighting for medals or anything big," she said. "But if that happened in the finals, it could really cost someone the medals, or a really good result."Leave a comment:
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Record snowfall in Russia's far east buries region in 2 metres of snow
The biggest snowfall in nearly 60 years on Russia's far eastern Kamchatka peninsula created vast drifts several metres tall that blocked entrances to buildings and buried cars.
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Rockalina the turtle meets member of her own species for the 1st time in 48 years
The rescued turtle spent decades on a kitchen floor in New Jersey, subsisting mainly on cat food
Rockalina the turtle has had a transformative year.
When wildlife rescuers first laid eyes on her back in February, they weren’t sure she’d last the night.
After nearly 50 years living on a kitchen floor in New Jersey, the eastern box turtle had developed ingrown nails, several deformities and dry, sloughing skin. She was too weak to even keep her eyes open.
But 11 months later, she’s thriving at a wildlife sanctuary, soaking up the sun and feasting on worms and berries.
And now, for the first time since she was plucked from the wild in 1977, she has a companion of her own species — a wee baby turtle named Pebble.
“They're doing good,” Chris Leone, Rockalina’s caretaker, told As It Happens host Nil Kӧksal. “They’re a lot of fun to watch.”
‘It looked like a mummy’
Leone is the founder of Garden State Tortoise, a New Jersey reptile breeding and rescue facility. He first met Rockalina nearly a year ago, when a woman reached out for help.
Her husband’s aunt and uncle had recently died, she said, and she was unsure what to do about the turtle who lived in their home.
The creature, she said, had the run of the house, but resided primarily in the kitchen, where she believes it ate a diet of mostly cat food.
She told Leone the couple’s son had found the turtle outside in 1977 when he was a boy and took her home. He had disabilities that prevented him from caring for his new pet, so the responsibility fell to his parents.
“Now, there was really nobody to take care of the turtle,” Leone said.
But eastern box turtles, he says, aren’t meant to live in a house. They are natural forest dwellers, who like tree cover, lots of humidity and ponds to soak in.
“A linoleum kitchen floor couldn't be any further from what this animal needs,” Leone said. “The animal looked like it was deceased. It looked like a mummy.”
The hard kitchen floors, he said, caused the bones in Rockalina’s fingers to grow “upwards and backwards,” he said.
“That caused the nails to grow in the complete opposite direction and curl over completely to the point where they were actually starting to grow back into her feet,” he said.
Her beak was misshapen, her skin was pale and flaking off, and cat hair had become entangled around one of her legs, cutting off circulation.
“We thought the foot was going to have to be removed,” Leone said. “Once we got her into good shape, we learned that although the leg will always be disfigured, it doesn't have to be amputated and she can actually use it to pivot on.”
Road to recovery
Over the last 11 months, Garden State Tortoise has documented Rockalina’s recovery on YouTube, where she’s gained a lot of fans.
Because she’s doing so well, staff decided it was time to give her a friend. Eastern box turtles, Leone says, live in colonies and it’s important they socialize with their own kind.
Enter Pebble, a brand new turtle hatched at the facility, just for Rockalina. The duo, Leone says, seem to be hitting it off.
In their supervised interactions so far, they seem curious about each other — sniffing each other and craning their necks to get a good stare.
“Curiosity is a good trigger to know that they're feeling good,” Leone said.
Leone urges people not to remove turtles from their natural habitats. But he says it’s too late for Rockalina to go back to the forest where she’d be unable to defend herself from predators.
So the staff are doing their best to make her as happy as she can be for her remaining days, of which there could be many.
“She could go another 50 years, believe it or not.”
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