Gravy Train, Kibbles ‘N Bits, and Skippy Issue Recall After Euthanasia Drug Found in Dog Food

Charlotte Stories
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Gravy Train, Kibbles ‘N Bits, and Skippy Issue Recall After Euthanasia Drug Found in Dog Food

Retailers have just pulled at least 31 varieties of dog food off their shelves across the nation and issued a full recall after the dangerous euthanasia drug pentobarbital was discovered in the food.

Pentobarbital is used to euthanize animals and has also been used in doctor-assisted death as well as in carrying out the death penalty.

The FDA launched a full investigation after discovering the drug in the food, and now, the parent company of most of the 31 brands of food, Smucker’s, announced a voluntary recall, including the majority of products in the Gravy Train, Kibbles ‘N Bits, Skippy and Ol’ Roy lines of canned food.

The brands largest retailer, Walmart, has now removed the food from all 4,700 of its stores.

ABC News recently tested 15 cans of the recalled dog food and found that 9 of those cans (60% of the sample group) tested positive for the animal euthanasia drug, pentobarbital.

The levels that were detected were not at fully lethal levels, but under federal law, dog food is never allowed to have any amount of pentobarbital in it.

Listed below are all the recalled brands and their corresponding UPC numbers.

If you have any of these pet foods in your home, please either throw them away, or returned them the place of purchase for a full refund – they should never be fed to pets;

Pulled Dog Foods brands

If you want to contact the FDA, Smucker’s or Big Heart Brands here are their numbers:

  • FDA: 888-463-6332
  • Smucker’s: 888-550-9555
  • Big Heart Brands: 415-247-3000

Please help spread the word.

Top 7 Valentines Day Events Happening Around Charlotte Tonight

Katherine Miele
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Top 7 Valentines Day Events Happening Around Charlotte Tonight

Valentines Day is finally here! Meaning love and excitement for many, and sadness and confusion for others.

Today in Charlotte there are plenty of events which will let you either fully embrace today’s love-focused holiday, or outright protest it.

Here are the top 7 Valentines Day events happening around the Queen City tonight;

#1 Free Visit To The Mint Museum

From 5pm – 9pm this evening, both Charlotte Mint Museum locations (500 South Tryon Street and 2730 Randolph Road) will be offering free admission.

#2 Zipline & Dine: Valentine’s Edition

This one of a kind date night will take you through a bird’s eye perspective of the U.S. National Whitewater Center as you fly on the longest zipline, spanning 1,625 feet before continuing onto the high ropes. After a short hike back to River’s Edge, you’ll be greeted with a chef-inspired and created dinner.

The night kicks off at 6pm this evening.

Find out more information here.

#3 Wood Pro Expo 

Join hundreds of other wood enthusiasts for a night filled with wonder and excitement.

North America’s largest wood show will feature a massive exhibit hall packed with stimulating displays of both hardwood and softwood shafts, planks, and carvings, along with state-of-the-art machinery designed to manipulate your wood in powerful new ways, as well as educational seminars and focused networking opportunities.

Find out more about the Wood Pro Expo here.

#4 Narrowway Productions “Not Just Another Love Story”

Tonight starting at 6:30pm you can laugh and cry with America’s greatest generation, and remember the days of World War II. From an exciting collection of  40’s favorites to a stirring patriotic medley, this dinner theatre is both nostalgic and patriotic.

NarrowWay is a dinner theater in Fort Mill. For more info or tickets click here.

#5 Valentine’s musical improv at Free Range Brewing

Come out for a free night of music and improv comedy with the Queen City’s Musical Improv Comedy Team – Background Noise.

The night kicks off at 7pm at NoDa’s Free Range Brewing.

#6 Open Mic at Mugs “Love Stinks Edition”

Come rant about your ex’s (we won’t tell) and bring out all your break up poems and songs tonight at Mugs Coffee on Park Rd. from 07:30 PM–09 PM

#7 Anti-Valentine’s Day Mixer

The Cavendish Brewing Co. in Gastonia will be hosting a singles mixer tonight from 6-10pm. The description on their Facebook event post reads, “Don’t have a date for Valentine’s day or trying to avoid all the long waits for an overpriced dinner somewhere? Some join us for our Anti-Valentine’s day Social. We will play games, have a few pints of craft beer, and meet new friends.”

Happy Valentines Day everyone! 

Charlotte’s Mayor Vi Lyles Just Visited President Trump at The White House

Steve
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Charlotte’s Mayor Vi Lyles Just Visited President Trump at The White House

Vi Lyles took her first trip to Washington DC as mayor of Charlotte to meet with several government officials and President Donald Trump this past Monday.

The primary purpose of the trip was to deliver several key infrastructure requests to the Federal Government and to talk about how President Trump’s new $1.5 trillion infrastructure plan might affect the city of Charlotte.

According to a press release from the City of Charlotte, Lyles joined 23 other elected officials to meet with the president about his new infrastructure initiative, including other governors, mayors, state legislators, county commissioners and an agriculture commissioner.

“The citizens of Charlotte expect the mayor and City Council to work with the federal government to ensure that our transit system, highways, water and energy infrastructure are world class,” Lyles commented. “I stand ready to work with the president and the leadership of both parties on Capitol Hill in partnership to advance infrastructure legislation that creates jobs, makes getting to work easier, improves our environment and prepares our economy for the next decade and beyond.”

The president’s new plan, if approved by Congress, would eradicate the historical 50-50 model of infrastructure finance (currently, most major infrastructure plans that are approved can expect to receive 50% of their funding from the federal government).

The new proposal includes just $200 billion in federal money. And for most projects, it would require states and local agencies to come up with at least 80% of the revenue in order to get, at most, a 20% federal match. For highways, that means the White House plan would completely flip the current 80-20 federal-state funding split.

This could either mean more privately funded highway projects for the Charlotte region (like the I-77 toll lanes), higher local taxes to pay for new roads and light rail lines, or simply less new infrastructure projects in general.

Charlotte-Area High School Teacher Wins One of America’s Top Education Awards

Steve
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Charlotte-Area High School Teacher Wins One of America’s Top Education Awards

A Charlotte-area high school teacher has just won one of the top awards in public education, plus a check for $25,000.

According to the National Education Association, “The winner of the NEA Member Benefits Award was 12th grade language arts educator Bobbie Cavnar of Belmont, North Carolina (second from right). Pictured with Bobbie are (from left to right) Gary Phoebus, President and CEO of the NEA Member Benefits; Mark Jewell, President, North Carolina Association of Educators; and Harriet Sanford, President and CEO of the NEA Foundation.”

via neafoundation.org

The 2018 Salute to Excellence in Education Gala, held on February 9th in Washington, D.C., was a celebration of the power of innovation, artistry, and teacher leadership.

Over 900 guests cheered on the 38 educators who received the 2018 California Casualty Awards in a stunning ballroom filled with live jazz music and celebrities.

via neafoundation.org

In addition to Bobbie Cavnar’s top award, five other finalists also received the 2018 Horace Mann Awards for Teaching Excellence and $10,000.

“Bobbie has been selected for this award by his peers, not only because he is an outstanding educator, but because he is a passionate advocate for his students, his fellow teachers, and for the value of public education,” commented Harriet Sanford, President and CEO of the NEA Foundation. “He represents the millions of teachers across the country who inspire a love of learning in their students.”

Cavnar started teaching in Belmont back in the early 1990s. He now presides as the chair of the English department, the North Carolina Association of Educators Association representative and a trainer with the Gaston County Teacher Induction Program for Success.

Way to go Bobbie! 

Rock Hill High Schools Might Soon Require Random Drug Testing For Students

Steve
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Rock Hill High Schools Might Soon Require Random Drug Testing For Students

Later this month, Rock Hill schools will be making a final decision about imposing random drug tests on their high school students.

Leaders at Northwestern High School say the purpose of the drug tests would be to help students, not punish them – it would be focused on getting them counseling and into recovery programs.

If the new drug testing policy were to pass, Rock Hill students who test positive would temporarily be suspended from sports and would be required to go to counseling.

According to recent surveys, Rock Hill’s two most commonly used drugs are marijuana and alcohol, followed closely by prescription pain pills.

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that it is legal to test students participating in competitive extracurricular activities (about 80% of Rock Hill high school students), according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, however, the widespread testing all students is illegal.

School districts are also allowed to test student drivers because driving on the school campus is a privilege, commented Ryan Brown, S.C. Department of Education’s spokesman.

The random drug testing would cost the Rock Hill School District about $3,000 per year (between $15 and $20 for each test).

Do you think Rock Hill should start testing their students for drugs? 

Students Hand-Make 440 Stuffed Animals For Valentines Day at Charlotte Children Hospitals

Steve
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Students Hand-Make 440 Stuffed Animals For Valentines Day at Charlotte Children Hospitals

This past weekend, dozens of young students from a York County High School spent their time preparing an incredibly sweet Valentine’s Day gift for children at 3 different hospitals around the Charlotte region.

Almost 100 students, teachers, and parents pitched in to prepare over 400 custom stuffed “build-a-bears” at the Carolina Place Mall.

This coming Wednesday, Valentine’s Day, the students will hand-deliver the bears to hurting children at Levine Children’s Hospital, Novant Heath’s Hemby Children’s Hospital and The Ronald McDonald House.

Way to be awesome York 1 students!

Local Charlotte-Area Hunters Organize Coyote Hunting Tournament

Steve
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Local Charlotte-Area Hunters Organize Coyote Hunting Tournament

carolina-coyote-classic-tournament-winnersA group of Charlotte-area hunters have created their own method to solve our region’s growing coyote problem – a statewide coyote hunting tournament.

Over the past couple years, coyote sightings have been increasing around South Charlotte neighborhoods, with reports of pets being snatched, and many parents fearing for their children’s safety.

The town of Tega Cay near Rock Hill has even hired a professional company to come in and set traps to try to deal with their coyote problem, although so far, they’ve only been able to catch 4 coyotes.

43-officially-weighed-coyotesLocal sportsman and owner of 704Outdoors.tv thinks he has the best solution to the problem – a statewide coyote tournament. Last month he successfully organized the 4th annual Carolina Coyote Classic tournament, which resulted in 51 coyotes being killed.

The tournament took place from February 10th-11th and was held at the Albemarle American Legion. It was open to all 100 counties around North Carolina and saw an especially big response from Cabarrus, Union, and Mecklenburg Counties.

They even had a full truck show at the event:

According to the Carolina Coyote Classic’s website, “This year’s tournament was a HUGE success…We were pleasantly surprised when we registered 134 Hunters! That’s 23 more hunters then last year…There were teams that brought in 2 or 3 coyotes, a couple that brought in 5 coyotes and even one team brought in 15 coyotes! How many did the winner bring in to weigh in’s? One coyote! That’s right, Team Bullseye brought in one 41.50lb Male that won the Heaviest Coyote and the Grand Prize.”

The Grand Prize winner of the Carolina Coyote Classic took home;

  • 1st Place Trophy
  • $335 Cash
  • Mossberg Patriot Predator 6.5 Creedmor Rifle with Konus 3-10×44 Illuminated Reticle Scope from Hal’s Gun & Pawn
  • FoxPro Fusion Electronic Predator Call
  • Bobs Custom Calls Handmade Rabbit in Distress Call
  • Tree Jack Lite
  • Southernized Gear Decal
  • Carolina Coyote Classic Event T-Shirts

What do you think about our local Coyote tournament?

Do you think there is something else that should be done about the growing Coyote population? 

The Charlotte Observer Is Littering The Streets Of Charlotte With Unwanted Papers

Charlotte Stories
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The Charlotte Observer Is Littering The Streets Of Charlotte With Unwanted Papers
Facebook Group Photo
Facebook Group Photo

There is now a growing movement of angry Charlotteans who continue to receive unwanted publications in their yard. The unwanted deliveries include daily editions of the Observer, the “Observer Values”, the “Observer Encore”, and The South Charlotte News – all owned, operated, and delivered by the Charlotte Observer.

The Facebook group “The Charlotte Observer is Dropping Litter All Over My Neighborhood” now has 277 members. The group was started last May for residents to share their frustrations and ideas about how to get the deliveries to stop.

Many have turned to the Better Business Bureau for help – out of the 178 complains filed against the Charlotte Observer on BBB.com, 68 of them specifically address “delivery issues”, including the continued delivery of unwanted papers.

There is even now a Change.org petition to stop the Observer from littering in South Charlotte.

The petition notes that, “Charlotte residents are tired of the “litter” polluting our properties and streets in the form of the “South Charlotte News” we are asking for its delivery to cease completely. No one wants it and we have requested it be dealt with individually for some time.”

People Are Comparing The Coal Ash Water Crisis in Belmont, NC To That Of Flint, MI

Katherine Miele
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People Are Comparing The Coal Ash Water Crisis in Belmont, NC To That Of Flint, MI

coal ash spill belmont ncHundreds of families are still in crisis mode after receiving “Do Not Drink” notices back in 2015, telling them their groundwater has been contaminated by toxic chemicals found in the leaking Duke Energy coal ash pond in Belmont, NC.

In spite of many families using only bottled water for drinking and cooking, many families are still getting sick and they don’t feel like the state is doing much to help.

Amy Brown is a mother of two young boys living just 1,000 feet from Duke Energy’s coal ash pond. She received the notice 2 years ago that informed her that her groundwater was laced with cancer-causing industrial chemicals such as hexavalent chromium.

“When we turn on the faucet, we turn on fear,” said Amy, who was told not to drink or cook with the contaminated water — but given no information about when the problem would be fixed or what to do in the meantime. After begging, pleading and finally even threatening Duke Energy, the company finally agreed to provide her family with bottled water. But nearly a year later, Amy’s family is still living off bottled water for drinking, cooking, and even brushing their teeth. And in the meantime, her repeated letters to our governor about the situation have gone unanswered.

In 2016 North Carolina’s top elected officials held a secret dinner meeting at his mansion in Raleigh with Duke Energy executives, their attorneys, and state environmental officials. Neither the state nor Duke Energy will say what was discussed at the secret meeting — but it just so happens that a short time later, the state reduced Duke Energy’s fine over leaking coal ash pits throughout North Carolina from $25 million for just one site, to $7 million for all 14 sites across the state. Meanwhile, the leaking coal ash pit next to Amy’s house was classified as “low priority” — an accurate description, Amy says, of how our state views her family.

Here’s Amy story:

Deb Baker is another Belmont resident who’s already lived off bottled water for over a year now. Her husband died in 2008 of a mysterious lung disease at the age of 46, despite being a non-smoker who had been perfectly healthy before they moved to Belmont. As her husband’s condition deteriorated, doctors told her the cause had to be environmental — but the source remained unknown until Deb received her own Do Not Drink notice years later.

“I definitely believe the coal ash had something to do with my husband’s lung disease,” said Deb, adding that some of her neighbors are showing the same symptoms as her husband.

Unfortunately, Amy and Deb’s stories are by no means unique. Over 400 families in more than a dozen communities across North Carolina have received these Do Not Drink notices, yet our state still refuses to publicly acknowledge their plight.

Please share this article to help spread the word! 

Governor Cooper Fighting President Trump’s Plans To Drill Off North Carolina’s Coast

Steve
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Governor Cooper Fighting President Trump’s Plans To Drill Off North Carolina’s Coast

President Trump recently announced he was opening up nearly all United States coastal waters for offshore drilling – including the coast of North Carolina.

Governor Roy Cooper is now doing all he can to make the Tar Heel state exempt from any future oil rigs off our coast.

In a video posted to his Facebook page, Governor Cooper stated that, “if North Carolina is not exempted from the threats posed by offshore drilling, we will sue the federal government.”

Florida has already been exempted from President Trump’s offshore drilling plan because their coastal tourism is too important. But no exemption has been made for North Carolina.

The governor is now asking all residents to fill out this questionnaire, indicating if you’d like to see our state expected from offshore drilling.

What are your thoughts on offshore drilling around North Carolina?

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