Latest news with #scatter
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
New feeding law in place to protect WA wildlife
The Brief It is now illegal to feed deer, elk and moose in Washington. The law was put into effect to prevent the transmission of diseases like chronic wasting disease at human-created feeding spots. Exceptions apply to certain agricultural practices or direct authorization from the WDFW director. SEATTLE - New feeding laws have made feeding certain wildlife illegal in Washington as of Saturday, according to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW). A new law preventing the feeding of deer, elk and moose was put into effect by the WDFW in order to protect wildlife health and the spread of diseases including chronic wasting disease (CWD). What we know Under the new rule, it is now illegal to place, distribute, deposit, or scatter feed including, but not limited to, grain, hay, fruits, salt blocks and more to deer, elk and moose species in Washington. It is also illegal to feed any other wildlife if doing so causes deer, elk or moose to congregate in the same feeding area, even if unintentional. Due to this, WDFW encourages residents to remove any items on their property – like bird feeders – that are attracting deer, elk or moose to limit congregation and diseases like CWD. Additionally, baiting deer, elk or moose is now unlawful. Dig deeper CWD is an always-fatal disease in deer, elk, moose and related species, with no cure. It was originally detected in-state in 2024, and has not currently spread outside Eastern Washington, but experts intend for the new feeding ban to prevent the spread of the disease between other populations. CWD can be spread through close contact between animals. When many gather in a feeding area alongside a sick animal, the disease is easier to be transmitted among them. The disease can also be spread through CWD-infected protein particles left behind at feeding sites, leading to the transmission to a different animal visiting the site later. Removing human-created feeding sites aims to prevent the spread of the disease within the species. Big picture view The law does not apply to agricultural practices such as: The cultivation, production and harvest of crops, including but not limited to, fruit, vegetables, hay, and grains. Animal husbandry towards the feeding and care of domestic livestock. Existing but abandoned orchards or similar food sources. Specific WDFW director authorization of the feeding of deer, elk or moose under the following circumstances: Prevention of private property damage Mitigation of population loss is anticipated by predicted upcoming winter mortality. Support a WDFW research or management program. What you can do The WDFW encourages residents to support wildlife in ways other than feeding them, such as participating in their Habitat at Home program, learning about local biodiversity, and by connecting with nature around and outside their homes. Additionally, the WDFW expresses the importance of always observing wildlife from a distance to protect the viewer and the animal, and to better see how it would act naturally without a human present. For more information on the new law, visit the WDFW website. The Source Information in this article came from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. Is Tacoma's Teekah Lewis cold case finally coming to a close? Here's what we know Over 100 Rite Aid and Bartell Drugs stores to close, including 8 in WA Marymoor Park announces 2025 summer concert series lineup in Redmond, WA Olympia, WA man dies at Grand Canyon after lengthy hike Washington raising price of Discover Pass To get the best local news, weather and sports in Seattle for free, sign up for the daily FOX Seattle Newsletter. Download the free FOX LOCAL app for mobile in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store for live Seattle news, top stories, weather updates and more local and national news.
Telegraph
09-04-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
How to clean your mattress in five simple steps
My grandmother used to say: 'Spend as much as you can on your bed and your shoes, because if you're not in one you're in the other.' It's true we spend about a third of our lives in bed, and when you think about how hard our mattresses work and how badly we often treat them, it makes sense to give them a little TLC now and again. The most minimal efforts will reward you by prolonging the life of your mattress and – even better – bless you with better quality sleep. I'm sharing with you here my guide to the sort of gentle care you can easily fold into your regular cleaning routine, along with what to do when you're faced with emergencies. How to clean a mattress in five steps Step one: Assemble the materials you need The good news is that you've probably already got most of them either under your sink or in your cleaning cupboard. You will need: a vacuum cleaner with a hose attachment, and ideally with an upholstery attachment, bicarbonate of soda, some mild laundry detergent, some soft cloths or sponges, a hair dryer, some three per cent hydrogen peroxide (available from chemists) for any blood stains. Step two: Air your mattress Each morning when you get up, throw back the bed covers, open the windows, and leave the bed to air as you shower and dress. We can each produce up to half a litre of sweat a night (hello, ladies of a certain age), and most of it soaks into the mattress. Give your bed a chance to air out before making it each morning and once a week, when you change the bedding, try to leave it uncovered for a few hours if you can. Many manufacturers recommend flipping and turning a mattress once a month – lots of mattresses have stickers on them with the months of the year to remind us – but honestly, few of us manage this as it's quite a cumbersome job. If you're able to turn it once a season, this will still really prolong the life of your mattress. Step three: Vacuum When you're ready to clean your mattress, start by removing all the bedding and vacuuming your mattress with an upholstery head fitted to the hose attachment on a medium setting. Work methodically and slowly. It's astonishing how much dust, dust mites, hair and skin cells exist on the average mattress. Each one is its own episode of CSI. When you turn the mattress once a month or once a quarter, remember to vacuum the other side too. Step four: Freshen up the bed Put some bicarbonate of soda in a jar or a shaker bottle with a few tablespoons of lavender oil and shake it a bit to distribute the essential oil. Either using the shaker bottle or a sieve, scatter a light dusting of the mixture across the whole mattress and leave it for an hour or so before vacuuming it all up. This will help eliminate any stale odours. Step five: Tackle any stains Ideally, you should tackle any mishaps and accidents immediately. If this is possible, use a clean cloth or wads of kitchen paper to blot up any wet stains by pressing hard against the stain and repeating with clean cloths or paper until the cloth or paper feels dry. Remember to blot, don't rub, as rubbing can ruin the finish of the fabric and push the stain deeper into the mattress. Then, proceed as below to remove the stain. You can clean old stains in exactly the same way, you may just need to repeat the steps a couple of times until the fabric is completely clean. In all cases, be careful to wet the mattress as little as is necessary to get the job done as it's essential to let it dry out completely before you put sheets back on the bed. How you clean the stains depends on what they are, but in all cases, proceed as gently as possible and avoid harsh chemicals which can damage your mattress as well as potentially being hazardous if you breathe them in while sleeping. For light stains, dissolve some mild laundry detergent in a small bowl of warm water. Dip your cloth or sponge into the water and squeeze it out tightly. Dab at the stain with your damp cloth or sponge, then dab again with a dry cloth. Repeat until you have lifted the stain. Let the mattress dry before remaking the bed – you can accelerate this with a hair dryer on a low setting if you need to. Blood stains require a slightly different treatment. It's very important to use cold – rather than hot – water on blood stains, as hot water can set the stain and make it much more difficult to remove. For light, fresh stains use the method described above, blotting and patting the stain dry until it is removed. If it is older, often bicarbonate of soda is your friend. Buy some three per cent hydrogen peroxide from the chemist and decant it into a spray bottle. Spray the stain then sprinkle on a thin, even layer of bicarbonate of soda and leave for an hour before vacuuming up the bicarbonate of soda. The stain should begin to lift; you may need to repeat several times to remove it completely. Mattress cleaning FAQs How can I prolong the life of my mattress? Change your bedlinen once a week and wash it on the highest setting indicated by the care label. Invest in a mattress protector and wash that every two to three months, or as needed. It's a lot easier to clean a mattress protector than a mattress. How often should I deep clean my mattress? If you deep clean your mattress every four to six months, the mattress will last longer and, the biggest reward of all, you will sleep more soundly. How can I check for bed bugs? This era of frequent international travel and centrally heated houses (they love a cosy bed as much as we do) has made the problem of bed bugs flourish. Stop the problem in its tracks by being careful when visiting hotels. Never put your suitcase on the bed. Use the suitcase stand or open your case in the bathroom. Check the mattress by pulling back the sheets and looking for spots of blood and the telltale brown specks of bedbug poo, especially around any seams, buttons and piping. Look at the headboard, too. When you're at home, do the same each time you change the bed. It is an easier problem to tackle if you find it very early. At the first sign, carefully remove the bedding into a plastic bag and wash it on the highest possible wash. Anything that can't be washed should be tumble dried for 30 minutes, which can help to kill larvae. Vacuum the bed and everything around it, especially cracks in floorboards and skirting boards, then immediately take the vacuum cleaner outside, empty the bag or cylinder into a plastic bag, seal and deposit in the outside bin. Be vigilant and if you see any further sign, contact a professional company. You do not want this to take hold as it becomes hugely difficult to eradicate.
The Guardian
17-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Gator Creek review – blood-lust in the bayou with drug-crazed killer reptiles
While shark-attack flicks hog the limelight, crocodile and alligator ones get comparatively little love, despite a long history from 1980's Alligator to 1999's Lake Placid to 2019 Netflix film Crawl. This mostly ludicrous but fitfully enjoyable entry plays like a Donald Trump meat-fever dream; after DEA agents bust a Louisiana everglades drug factory, the Ribena-coloured run-off leaks into the waterways, creating a strain of super-aggressive alligators. Lead prospective morsel in the human chum bucket is biology student Kyle (Athena Strates), who's heading into the wilderness to scatter her brother's ashes. Her obnoxious pal Malika (Elisha Applebaum) – a female Steven Stifler – books them on a light aircraft, despite Kyle's fear of flying. With everyone oblivious to wingnut pilot Frank (Andonis Anthony) essentially being Quint from Jaws, the flight nosedives into the bayou. And with Frank's operation unchartered, no mobile phone coverage and a swamp teeming with reptiles, they are fresh out of gator aid. From the sun-baked old-timer round the back of the 7/11 crowing over a super-sized saurian, Gator Creek has reptilian-cortex bloodlust switched on from the get-go. Too much, to be honest; on the evidence of the film's spasmodic plotting, it seems like writers Ashley Holberry and Gavin Cosmo Mehrtens have been sipping the purple run-off themselves. A spat over a mobile phone with a cartoon financial trader improbably causes the plane to crash. With Kyle's bestie Alice (Madalena Aragão) filching a batch of lizard eggs, the film appears to give the slaughter a behavioural explanation. But it's completely forgotten until the drug-den finale when, with Kyle in her singlet facing down angry mama gator, the film suddenly seems to think it's Aliens. Without a sensible guiding hand, a punch-drunk dissonance takes hold of proceedings. Kyle tries to dispense zoological knowledge as a way out of their predicament, which becomes superfluous when events boil down to a rabid reptile rugby scrum. Directors Taneli Mustonen and Brad Watson show bursts of proficiency, with drone shots of metallic-looking glades and interesting tilt-shift effects for the plane crash. But they are alongside some of the most laughable practical effects imaginable: such as the man-trap gator jaws someone unwittingly sticks their head into. Of course there are the copious gorehound kills to latch on to, but Gator Creek is liable to leave you, like its cast, with an unsavoury residue on your hands. Gator Creek is on digital platforms from 24 March.
