Houdini, the 12-foot-long Burmese python in Ketchum, Idaho, accidentally swallowed a large electric blanket and electrical cord, after pulling it from the wall in July . Veterinary surgeons managed to remove the whole thing, leaving Houdini in good condition.
— Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Crash, the pelican that smashed into a car in Malibu, Calif., had undergone a month's rehabilitation only, when finally released in July, to collide beak-first with some rocks before successfully lifting off. Wildlife officials said Crash may have been disoriented from eating toxic algae.
— Los Angeles Times
Barney, the Doberman pinscher guarding a children's museum near Wells, England, lost control and chewed up almost $1 million worth of rare teddy bears in August, including one once belonging to Elvis Presley. —The Independent
