Dog ban issued after puppy gets drunk

A British court has barred a man from having a dog for three years after his Labrador puppy was discovered drunk.
Matthew Cox had been drinking vodka and coke with his roommate on August 22 when he left his glass on the floor to go for a smoke.
He returned to find that his six-month-old dog, Max, had swallowed the booze.
But he left the animal at home, and prosecutor Maria Moore told Nottingham Magistrate's Court in central England that the puppy was later spotted staggering and falling over near Cox's home.
Police were called and took the dog to an emergency vet, where it was put on a drip to flush the alcohol out of its system.
Magistrate J A Smith called the incident "downright stupid".
The puppy has since been given a new home.

This begs the question; How on earth does a puppy develop the taste for an alcoholic beverage?

Mind you, having asked that, I have noticed over the years, some of my mates have had dogs which have had a tendency to consume all manner of matter (organic or not), at quite an express speed.

When Wombats Attack

Quite a few years ago, I was hand feeding a Wombat in Australia. The jolly round little beggar decided that it wanted to have a good go at my fingers. My experience was nothing compared to this unfortunate fellow, as described in the following article from Stuff NZ:

A rare wombat attack has left a Black Saturday survivor with bite wounds to his arms and legs.

Bruce Kringle, aged in his 50s, got more than he bargained for when he emerged from his caravan at Flowerdale, north-east of Melbourne, on Tuesday morning, to be attacked by a wombat.

Mr Kringle, who is waiting for his new house to be built, was set upon by the wombat which mauled his leg and then managed to pull him to the ground.

Kelly Smith, who works at the Flowerdale Hotel, said the wombat then jumped on Mr Kringle's chest and continued scratching him with its claws.

"Bruce managed to find an axe and killed it," Ms Smith told AAP.

"It's bizarre what happened.

"He's okay but the wombat mauled his leg, got him to the ground and then started clawing at his chest."

She said Mr Kringle is living in a caravan on his block of land until his house is built.

Paramedics cleaned the man's wounds and took him to the Northern Hospital in Epping in a stable condition.

Geoff McClure, compliance team leader for the Department of Sustainability and Environment, said a wombat attack was extremely unusual.

He said wombats could feel threatened and rush at a person, especially if the animal was suffering from the skin condition mange, caused by parasitic mites.

''In the advanced stages wombats become very irritable and anyone who approaches them, they usually view as a threat and may run towards them,'' he said.

''They appear aggressive but we have never had reports of wombats actually attacking people.''