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Bionic bodies: The animals with artificial additions
When catastrophe strikes a beloved pet, people go to any lengths to help them - whether that's an hours-long operation to replace a leg, or a fundraising drive to pay for a new tail. So, from the cat with bionic paws to the goose with a prosthetic beak, here are some animals - with extras.
Prosthetic puss
Image copyrightJIM INCLEDON
Not a new children's book - although perhaps it should be - the Cat with the Bionic Paws is Oscar, a friendly all-black feline from Jerseywhose back feet were chopped off by a combine harvester while he was dozing in a sunny maize field.
Oscar, who was aged two-and-a-half when the accident happened in 2010, was first treated by a local vet who managed to stop the bleeding and dress the wounds.
He was then flown over to Surrey where vet Noel Fitzpatrick fitted the cat with new feet.
The prosthetic pegs, snappily calledintraosseous transcutaneous amputation prosthetics (Itaps) were developed by a team from University College London.
The Itap technology has been used in humans, including to create a prosthetic for a woman who lost her arm in the July 2005 London bombings.
Image copyrightBBC
Image captionOscar's smart pink socks kept his back stumps in good condition until he could have his bionic paws fitted
Beaky blinder
The goose that got the plastic beak is Tilly who - despite his name - is male. He lost half of his bill as a gosling when he ate some barbed wire.
He had compensated over the years by using his tongue instead of the lower mandible - but when he was about seven years old, this became too difficult.
Rather than give up on Tilly and have him put down when he could no longer feed, his owner Frances Hall took him to vet Andy MacGregor.
Mr MacGregor, with the help of a local dentist, made an implant and a false beak out of plastic.
Ms Hall, from Ilkley, West Yorkshire described her feathered friend as "like a dog; he follows me around everywhere."
Roll model
Image copyrightHIGHCROFT VETERINARY HOSPITAL
Image captionFree-wheeler: Touché has had a new lease of life
Touché the tortoise had a nasty accident at his home in Bristol and vets had to decide whether to amputate one of his legs, or put him to sleep.
Happily for the three-legged slowcoach, staff at Highcroft Veterinary Hospital removed a leg before using resin to stick the chassis of a toy car to the the underside of his shell.
Touché is now "zooming around the garden as if nothing has happened," according to owner Lisa Purnell.
He is not the only beshelled creature to benefit from the technique.
Harriet, from Kent, has two wheels fitted to the rear of her carapace after being injured by a rat, while Jack, from Ledbury in Herefordshire, lost a back leg to a strimmer when his owner was tidying up the garden. He now has a Lego wheel glued to the underneath of his shell.
Wonky donkey
Image copyrightANIMAL WELFARE OF LUXOR
Hector the donkey was missing a foot before a leg was sent from Leicestershire to Luxor, in Egypt, by Legs4Africa, a charity that donates prosthetics to amputees.
It's thought Hector lost his foot after being tethered by his leg, cutting off the circulation.
A new foot was cobbled together from parts of donated prosthetics and Hector, who spent four months able to stand but unable to walk, is up and about.
On the moo-ve
Duke the dwarf bullock was left paralysed when a group of cows attacked him.
He was going to be put down, but was saved by Sharon Lawlor, who runs an animal sanctuary, Calf, near Malton in North Yorkshire.
Duke has been fitted with a special device with two main wheels, and two smaller wheels similar to stabilisers on a bike.
He's now got used to trundling around and has inspired a range of merchandise - the proceeds of which help run his home.
A sorry tail
Image captionTop row: Bob gets his new tail fitted Bottom row: Bob showing his new tail off
A rescue horse whose tail had fallen off after a wet bandage was left on for too long found himself unable to swish flies away.
Because of this, Bob became covered in insect bites.
Ferne Animal Sanctuary in Chard, Somerset, successfully appealed for money to buy him not just one, but two new tails - one for the summer and one for the winter.
Created by a specialist horse hair extensions company, the fake tails match his colour and are put on each morning and taken off each evening after the horse flies have gone away, says Nicky Haddock from the sanctuary.
"We're getting a bit of practice and it's getting a bit tidier each time, so hopefully he doesn't have to be embarrassed," she adds.
Report names top holiday destinations for summer
Interest in travel to Israel and Morocco has rocketed this summer as holidaymakers look for alternatives to Sharm el-Sheikh and Tunisia, where travel restrictions continue to apply.
Intent to travel to Israel was up 33% while intent to travel to Morocco was up 44%, according to Sojern's Q2 Global Travel Insights Report.
Using online search and booking data, performance marketing engine Sojern found that intent to travel to Tunisia and Egypt was significantly down from Europe, but the UK appears to be the most resilient market.
In the UK, intent to travel to Tunisia during July was up 10% year on year and for Egypt it was only 3% down.
Across Europe as a whole, intent to travel to Tunisia was 9% down, Egypt was down 15% and Turkey was down 14%.
Overall, top five short-haul destinations for European travellers this summer are Palma de Mallorca, Barcelona, London, Ibiza and Malaga.
For those heading long-haul, the most popular choices are New York, Bangkok, Los Angeles, Bali and Miami.
Spain remains the most popular destination overall for UK travellers, according to Sojern's report.
I would love to go to Spain ..it is reasonably cheap from Europ as the flight tickets are not expensive.. I do have a business visa But will need to sort out the tourist visa for the family .they need you to book the hotel and buy the airplane tickets before they even
consider the application...Been thinking about other destinations like Barbados, Bermuda or Dominican Republic for next year..no visa required..and way more intersting..best time to go is around Christmas.. But that comes with a price..
Amr said:
book the hotel and buy the airplane tickets
i think you can book without paying?? huh?
Jane BM
Anytime from November to April is a good time for the Caribbean as its not hurricane season then, so you could always go around February time and it's not as expensive as going at Christmas/New Year. I'd thoroughly recommend the Caribbean....
Rosewater said:
Of course you can but the spanish embassy doesn't accept reservation from the likes of booking.com and Expedia allowing free cancellations...they require a payed booking from the hotel itself..
Jane BM said:
Absolutely...it is just that in Christmas you would be in Holiday already and you don't need to use dedicated days off from work...have you been there before Jane?
Turkish army group announces takeover on TV
Image captionThe Bosphorus bridge was blocked off by military units
An army group in Turkey says it has taken over the country, with soldiers at strategic points in Istanbul and jets flying low in the capital, Ankara.
A statement read on TV said a "peace council" now ran the country and there was a curfew and martial law.
It is unclear who the group is or its level of support. Some top army officials are said to be detained.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he would overcome what he called an uprising by a minority.
Reports are coming of two explosions at parliament building in Ankara.
People across Turkey are very confused and surprised, the BBC's Katy Watson in Istanbul says.
In Washington, US President Barack Obama urged all parties in Turkey to support the "democratically elected government".
Nato called for "full respect" for Turkey's democratic institutions.
Mr Erdogan told CNN Turk by mobile phone the action was by a "parallel structure" that would bring the necessary response. He has used this term in the past to refer to Fethullah Gulen, a US-based Muslim cleric he accuses of fomenting unrest.
Mr Erdogan called on people to take to the streets to oppose the uprising.
He said: "I urge the Turkish people to convene at public squares and airports. I never believed in a power higher than the power of the people."
Mr Erdogan said he was on his way to Ankara and those involved in the action would pay a heavy price. His office said he was in a secure location.
Reports earlier on Friday said the president was on holiday in the south-western resort of Marmaris.
Defying the announced curfew, a number of Erdogan supporters later turned out on Istanbul's central Taksim Square as reports of the attempted coup emerged.
There have since been reports of clashes there, with some on Twitter saying that gunfire has been heard near the square.
PM Binali Yildirim had earlier denounced an "illegal action" by a military "group", stressing it was not a coup. He said that the government remained in charge.
The military group's statement on national broadcaster TRT, read by an announcer, said that democratic and secular rule of law had been eroded by the current government. There would be new constitution, it said.
A Turkish presidential source told Reuters news agency that the statement was not authorised by the army's command.
Image copyrightAP
Image captionErdogan supporters gathered on Istanbul's Taksim Square for a protest rally
Image copyrightREUTERS
Image captionOne protester tried to block tanks at Istanbul's Ataturk airport
Image captionMr Erdogan spoke to CNN Turk via Facetime
There are reports Turkey's top general, General Hulusi Akar, is among those taken hostage at the military HQ.
Mr Yildirim told NTV by telephone: "There was an illegal act by a group within the military that was acting out of the chain of military command. Our people should know that we will not allow any activity that would harm democracy."
Traffic has been stopped from crossing both the Bosphorus and Fatih Sultan Mehmet bridges in Istanbul.
There are reports of gunshots and at least one loud explosion in the capital Ankara. Other reports said soldiers were inside buildings of the Turkish state broadcaster in Ankara.
Image captionSoldiers were deployed in Istanbul's Taksim Square
Image captionPolice were standing guard outside the Turkish military HQ in Ankara
Gunfire was also heard outside Istanbul police HQ and tanks are said to be stationed outside Istanbul airport. All flights are cancelled, reports say.
One European Union source told Reuters that the military action "looks like a relatively well-orchestrated coup by a substantial body of the military, not just a few colonels".
Visiting Moscow, US Secretary of State John Kerry said he hoped for peace and "continuity" in Turkey.
British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said he was "very concerned" by events.
Turkey's military coups
1993 - Claims of a "covert coup" intended to prevent a peace settlement with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK)
1980 - Military coup following armed conflict between right-wing and left-wing groups in the 1970s
1971 - Military coup known as the "coup by memorandum", which the military delivered instead of sending out tanks
1960 - Coup by group of young military officer outside chain of command, against the democratically-elected democrat party.
Oh you have to pay online/pre-payment.
The coup has failed!!! Thx god
I have indeed...been to quite a few of the Caribbean Islands.....would be my holiday of choice every time if I could afford it...lol...
Shazza100
Low cost holidays have gone into administration. I'm quite shocked as I have used them a lot. I'm just glad I don't have anything presently booked!
Shocking news about Low Cost. I too have used them many times and was just waiting for my sciatica to clear up before booking with them for the autumn. They were still showing on line a couple of weeks ago. I hadn't realised they,weren't with ABTA.
I thought they were ABTA too, I was so sure I checked it, I've used them many times. Was just about to book with them again!!
I think those who have paid with a credit card, as I always do, maý have some chance of a refund. This, however, is of little comfort to those having their holidays ruined, or having to pay again on the spot for things they have already paid for. Not everyone has a spare few hundred pounds available to cover this sort of expense.
I read that some of the flights are still covered as when you pay the flight money goes straight to the airline. Hotel would have to be paid for again :-(
We too used them frequently !! Of late a couple of other company's named Zleeping hotels and 7 ideas are also based in Spain and owned by the same Person, and again we have booked with them.
I've used 7ideas aswell!! Have they gone the same way?? @Selmi
Hi Rosewater, hope that you are well! ! They have failed, but only for now. I feel extremely sorry for those that have been caught as they are going to suffer so much. They are going to be put through hell. Hopefully after this mornings news where another 8000 police officers have been suspended he will need his troops from Cyprus . Did you know that Erdogan gave orders for the news to report only in Turkish, leaving all the tourist without any information. He is an EVIL man.
sorry i don't trust the medioa , i have always stood with erdogan , they want to destory his reputation