BC SPCA counsels parents/pet owners on handling coyote encounters
Coyotes have become common sights in cities, towns and farms across North America. The Lower Mainland is home to an estimated 2,000 to 3,000 urban coyotes, which moved into the area in the 1980s. There are no coyotes on Vancouver Island or the Gulf Islands. Coyotes are related to wolves, foxes and dogs. Just like our pet dogs,...
Do You Know Someone Who Should Not be Driving?
I often hear comments that a friend or family member should not be driving. This person is usually either an older driver or a person suffering from health issues known to the person making the comment. These people also express the wish that someone would do something about it. According to RoadSafetyBC, the provincial agency...
Column: U.S. crisis shows need to speak truth to power
As was demonstrated in the U.S. last week, many who are motivated by fear and ignorance are feeling emboldened — and desperate. It’s not just in the United States. Irrational, authoritarian, anti-science rhetoric and action has been heating up from Brazil to India to Hungary, and is fully entrenched in places like Russia and China. […]
Hard work pays dividends with new ladder truck for Big White Fire Department
Christmas may be over, but the Big White Fire Department is still celebrating. The January arrival of their one-of-a-kind, 78-foot long Rosenbauer Viper Aerial ladder truck marks the end of a five-year project that started in April 2016. Crews have now ceremonially pushed Ladder 311 into its own bay in the Big White Fire...
Cougar 'dispatched' after killing Trail family's dog
A Trail family has lost their pet to a cougar attack, according to Trail rop cop RCMP Sgt. Mike Wicentowich. "On Jan. 10, 2021 at 5:45 p.m., Trail and Greater District RCMP and the BC Conservation Officer Service responded to a complaint of a young cougar who had attacked and killed a dog in backyard of a residence in the...
Hinton RCMP request BC residents to look for missing man
RCMP continue to seek the public’s assistance in the disappearance of 40-year-old Robert Allen Wetsch. Robert was last seen in Hinton on May 19, 2019. Updated information in December 2019 indicated he may potentially be in British Columbia. The Hinton RCMP, along with Robert’s family, are requesting anyone who may have been...
Letter: We must be vigilant
Dear Editor. We fought global wars, and millions of people died to defend and protect our human rights, including our right to have democratic governments. Last week’s invasion of the Capital Hill in DC was nothing but a stunning attack on democracy, perpetrated by none other than the President of the United States. It was ...
BC SPCA reminds public to spay or neuter pets after large rabbit intake
The BC SPCA is reminding the public of the importance of spaying or neutering their pets after 23 rabbits were recently surrendered to SPCA facilities in the Kootenays. The bunnies, who are between eight and 20 weeks old (with the exception of one adult), were brought into the East and West Kootenay shelters last month as...
Column: What we need
The following is adapted from The Sacred Balance: Rediscovering Our Place in Nature (Greystone Books), a book I wrote with Amanda McConnell in 1997 and updated in 2007. It seems as relevant today as when we wrote it, if not more so. I hope you enjoy it and that the year ahead brings new ways of seeing and thinking about the...
Seven Summits Centre for Learning students Dressember campaign at success
The Dressember campaign to end human trafficking and modern day slavery at the Seven Summits Centre for Learning (7S) in Rossland was another success as students raised more than $500 during the fundraising drive. "We want to thank all those in the community, as well as our 7S students and parents, who donated to our...
