GRAHAM REFURBISHING GARDEN

ROBERT SCHNECK: Blue Pigs? What about Pink Chickens?

There is a book waiting to be written about the art of chicken dyeing. The "Fantasy Irl" blog (www.fantasyirl.net/blog/2010/01/02/pink-chickens/) has several photographs of pink chickens and "Amanda" writes: In Bali, apparently there are rare pink chickens, supposedly they are not dyed, although some people say they are dyed as babies, either way they are really cute. I like to believe that they are real.

Comments included:

-I read in someone�s blog that they rub this pink dye on them to prevent the hawks from swooping down and snatching them. Man, it was a funny sight to see a bunch of pink chickens walking around!

-At the fair this year, some 4-H club kids dyed their weird looking silky chickens (the chicken version of an angora cat), with various flavors of Kool-Aid drink mixes. There was a pink one (pink lemonade), a purple one (grape), a green one (lime), and an orange one (orange). We were asked to smell the purple one, and it did indeed smell like grape drink. This dye wears off in a day or so.

Of course we have more questions than answers: Is there a rare species of pink Balinese chicken? Were the silky chickens in this picture given the Kool-Aid treatment? How well should you know someone before asking to smell their chicken?

RICHARD FREEMAN: Big Cat Sighting

On Saturday the 12th of March 2011 I was travelling up to Bristol to spend the weekend with a friend. I was on a National Express coach heading north up the M5. The time was 1.13 pm. I looked to my left at some fields between West Clyst and the M5. Standing in a field approximately 800 feet from me was a big cat. It was the size of a full grown German Shepherd dog. Its tail was almost as long as its body and was curled towards the end. The head was rounded with small ears. The fur was very dark brown, like dark chocolate and seemed sleek and almost shiny. The animal did not move and appeared to be watching something although I could see no other people or animals in the field.

The animal seemed to be a very dark furred puma. The closest in colour I have been able to find on the net was this photo.

The animal was only in view for about 8 seconds. During that time it stood still without moving in a semi crouched stance. Oddly the sighting did not seem fantastical but almost mundane.

COMING IMMINENTLY FROM CFZ PRESS

The Second in our series of Fortean anthologies...

OLL LEWIS: Yesterday's News Today

http://cryptozoologynews.blogspot.com/

On this day in 1999 Rod Hull died. Hull was best known for capering around with his hand in an emu (up to the elbow), living in a big pink windmill and a long war of attrition against a vacuum cleaner riding witch.
And now the news:

Bald eagles sighted along Piscataqua
Red Bluff Police: Woman reports bear sighting near...
Suburban birds have deadly stalker: your cat
Man stomped on sandwich-stalking ibis

Rod Hull loves his jelly:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQsRClW77_4