Your locally owned newspaper serving North Bend and Snoqualmie
‘One bad inning’ costs Wildcats a victory Page 10
Friday, April 8, 2016
Bat dies near North Bend from deadly fungus White-nose syndrome could be a harbinger of doom for local bat population By Dylan Chaffin dchaffin@snovalleystar.com On March 11, a pair of hikers came across a sickly little brown bat near North Bend. Its wings had been eaten away by a fungus, rendering it incapable of flight. The bat was taken to the Progressive Animal Welfare Society in Lynnwood, where veterinarians provided water,
food and shelter for the animal before it died two days later. Further testing by the U.S. Geological Survey’s National Wildlife Health Center confirmed that the bat had a disease known as white-nose syndrome. It’s the first-ever recorded case in the Pacific Northwest of white-nose syndrome — a deadly disease that disrupts
hibernation patterns and causes bats to exhibit strange behaviors, including leaving their winter shelter to hunt for insects, or flying during the day. It manifests as a white fungus that appears on the snouts and other parts of the bat. The presence of the syndrome has the potential to be completely devastating to the bat population, as well as have a large economic By Progressive Animal Welfare Society
See BAT, Page 6
Snoqualmie baker’s dog cookie recipe wins third-place prize By Dylan Chaffin dchaffin@snovalleystar.com Every dog owner has probably wished, at one time or another, that they could share a delicious Girl Scout cookie with Fido. The ingredients in many of the cookies, including chocolate and dairy, are notoriously bad, if not fatal, for dogs. But Snoqualmie resident Leslie Johnson has found a way to make treats that are both safe and use human-grade ingredients in the dog biscuits she crafts at her home-based business, Chasing Rabbits Bakery. Earlier this month, Johnson took third place in a contest sponsored by the Seattle Humane Society and the Girl Scouts of Western Washington. Her entry, a pumpkin carob cookie, was loosely based on of the Girl Scouts’ second-most popular treat, the Samoa, she said — a vanilla cookie coated in caramel, sprinkled with toasted coconut and laced with chocolate stripes. Carob is a pet-friendly alternative to chocolate, and the canned pumpkin she uses is good for digestion, low in calories, and dogs seem to favor the taste, Johnson said. She then adds wheat, oat or rice See COOKIES, Page 7
Dylan Chaffin / dchaffin@snovalleystar.com
Chasing Rabbits owner Leslie Johnson, who won third place in a contest sponsored by the Seattle Humane Society and Girl Scouts of Western Washington, poses at her home in Snoqualmie Ridge.
The little brown bat confirmed with white-nose syndrome.
Mount Si High School officials discouraging ‘senior assassin’ game Mount Si High administrators and local law enforcement are working together to discourage participation in an out of school activity students are calling “Senior Assassin.” In an email blast last week, Mount Si Principal John Belcher said administrators are not taking the activity lightly, as the game has caused “grave concerns about student safety and potential disruption to the school environment.” Belcher stressed that the activity is not sponsored by Mt. Si or the Snoqualmie Valley School District. Students who choose to participate are assigned a “target” student whom they have to shoot with a Nerftype toy gun. Students have developed some rules about where and when this activity can take place, some specifying that the game is prohibited on school grounds during school hours. However, Mt. Si has received several reports of unsafe driving, including speeding and blocking exits
while playing the game. There have also been reports of parents calling for an earlier dismissal time in order to give students time to walk to their cars and leave, so they won’t get “caught” by their “assassin,” Belcher said. “We also worry that these activities outside of school could place our students in danger, if their actions are perceived to be real threats by a neighbor or community member,” he added. “Given tragic events that have occurred in schools related to shootings, this activity is clearly not appropriate and should not be taken lightly. We appreciate your partnership in helping your student understand this.”
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