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Woman accused of teaching bird cuss words

WARWICK, R.I., Sept. 9 (UPI) -- A Rhode Island woman is facing charges for allegedly training her pet cockatoo to say curse words at her ex-husband and his girlfriend, who live next door.

Lynne Taylor is set to appear in Warwick Municipal Court next week to defend herself against allegations that she violated a city animal noise ordinance by training the bird, Willy, to swear at her neighbors, Kathleen Melker and Craig Fontaine, The Boston Herald reported.

"The statute reads if an individual is annoyed, that becomes a public nuisance. That is broad based on case law," said Taylor's lawyer, Stephen Peltier.

Peltier said his client denies the allegations and that the bird actually says, "knock it off," a phrase Fontaine taught it.

"The bird is reacting to its environment," added Peltier, who motioned to dismiss the case Thursday. "Melker is instigating the issue."

Melker said the bird's foul language as forced her and Fontaine to put their $332,000 home up for sale.

"We're done," Melker said. "We have no quality of life."

If Taylor is found guilty she will have to pay a $15 fine.

Wiener dogs let loose for race

GERMANTOWN, Tenn., Sept. 9 (UPI) -- Dog owners lined up their dachshunds for this weekend's 15th annual "Running of the Weenies" at The Germantown Festival in Tennessee.

The race began Saturday afternoon at the festival, The (Memphis) Commercial Appeal reported.

Many dogs were bribed with toys or treats to make their way to the finish line.

"That's the fun of it, you have no idea what will happen," said Donna VanBrunt of Germantown. Her friend, Millie Webster, who had entered her 2-year-old named Zoey in the race.

The winner of the dachshunds race was 3-year-old Nitro, who ran straight to the finish line.

"We don't do any special training," said owner Vinnie Liberto. "But when we named him Nitro -- I think that meant he had to be fast."

Other events at the Germantown Festival included a dachshunds costume contest, as well as hundreds of vendor booths with handmade crafts and food.

"It's just been a great family event," said festival attendee Audrey Patterson.

Fermenting herring prompted gas leak call

STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Sept. 9 (UPI) -- A suspected gas leak in a Stockholm, Sweden, neighborhood turned out to be fermenting herring, fire officials said.

Stockholm fire fighter Bjorn Hornsten told national radio station SR that fire trucks and police vehicles were sent to the neighborhood Saturday after someone reported what smelled like gas in a stairwell.

Instead of a gas leak, emergency crews found surstromming, fermented herring that is a foul-smelling, traditional Swedish delicacy, and herring fermenting parties are held in the fall, Swedish news agency TT reported.

"I guess somebody didn't know what surstromming smells like," police officer Sven-Erik Olsson said.

1903 Ford Model A up for auction

HERSHEY, Pa., Sept. 8 (UPI) -- A 1903 Ford Model A, one of the oldest surviving cars made by Ford Motor Co., will be up for auction in Hershey, Pa., officials said.

The car, scheduled to be auctioned Oct. 11 by RM Auctions, is expected to fetch $350,000 to $500,000, The Detroit News reported.

Carlton Pate III, an antique car collector and author of Pate's Early Ford Automobile Encyclopedia, said the Model A up for auction is one of the oldest Ford cars ever sold, but cannot be called the oldest, because there was at least one other car shipped the same day.

The car comes with extensive documentation which details condition and history, including its five owners.

RM Auctions said the car, which originally sold for $850, has all of its original early features, including the rare Kingston carburetor and the original coil box stamped No. 30.