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in San Bernardino, CA

Police warned Simi Valley residents Thursday to keep their pets indoors after several reports of a mountain lion that is suspected of attacking two dogs, including one that was killed.

The Tennessee Aquarium is using an electric eel named Miguel Wattson to light up a Christmas tree.

A Michigan boy had the best kind of moral support at his adoption hearing this week: his entire kindergarten class.

A deputy-involved shooting erupted at a San Bernardino hotel Thursday afternoon.

A drug used to reduce delusions among Parkinsons patients has the same benefit for people suffering from Alzheimers disease and other forms of dementia, researchers announced this week.

Walton was accused of sexually assaulting a woman at her Santa Monica hotel.

A woman fought to protect her beloved miniature Schnauzer from a mountain lion by punching the big cat and trying to pry the dog from its powerful jaws during a deadly encounter in the backyard of a Simi Valley home.Several neighbors reported seeing the mountain lion in the residential area in the hours before 10-year-old Pumbaa was killed and another dog was injured by the animal at a nearby home, police said Thursday. How the Star of a High School Musical Ended Up Homeless and Overdosing on LA Streets Police and agents with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife responded to the neighborhood Wednesday. Officers remained in the area early Thursday, searching for the big cat in the community about 40 miles northwest of Los Angeles.In a public safety alert, police said there were multiple reports of a mountain lion and asked people to keep pets indoors. The first reports were received Wednesday around midday in the Pawnee Court and Seneca Place area in northeast Simi Valley. Check Out These Free or Cheap Things to Do in LA Officers who responded overnight looked over a fence and saw the mountain lion in the backyard of a home with a dead dog, police said. The owner suffered a minor cut on her finger after she tried to protect her pet from the big cat.She obviously cared about her dog very much, as all dog owners do, said Sgt. Keith Eisenhour. She tried to fend the animal off by punching it, elbowing it and tried to pry its jaws open. Celebrity Fans in the Stands: Los Angeles Lakers Edition The homeowners brother said Pumbaa woke her up around 2 a.m.She figured it had to go to the bathroom and opened the door, said the brother, identified only as Brian. I think she went out first, and she saw the mountain lion and her dog charged under her legs toward the mountain lion, and the mountain lion snapped it up.She jumped on the mountain lion and tried to pry its jaws open to save her dog because she loves her dog so much.Authorities, including police and officers with Ventura County Animal Control, fanned out in the neighborhood but did not find the animal.The mountain lion was wearing a tracking collar, the Ventura County Star reported. The devices are used by the National Park Service as part of the agencys studies of mountain lions in Southern California.In June 2018, a litter of four mountain lion kittens was found in the Simi Hills, a small area of habitat wedged between the larger Santa Monica and Santa Susana mountain ranges. The kittens are all female and are now known as P-66, P-67, P-68 and P-69.The mother of the kittens is P-62, who researchers have been tracking since January.She was recaptured in July and fitted with a new GPS collar.The mountain lion population is high in California, relative to other parts of the United States. Density estimates vary, but the figure might be as high as 10 lions per 100 square miles. By that estimate, the population is somewhere between 4,000 to 6,000 mountain lions statewide.But its difficult to say whether that population is increasing or decreasing without an ongoing statewide study.One thing is certain -- mountain lions go where they can find food, primarily deer. That sometimes brings them into urban areas, like Simi Valley, but it should be noted that a person is 1,000 times more likely to be struck by lightning than attacked by a mountain lion, according to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. There have been only 16 verified mountain lion attacks in California since 1890, six of which were fatal, according to the agency.The department receives hundreds of reports each year about mountain lions killing pets and livestock.Mountain lions are a specially protected species in California under the California Wildlife Protection Act of 1990, approved as Prop 117 by California voters. The classification has nothing to do with mountain lion numbers in California, but its passage made it illegal to hunt the big cats.Photo Credit: Family Photo

Having a whale of a timeThat enjoyable pursuit can be done anywhere, from your den to a friends backyard to the library, if youve found an especially thrilling book. For a whale of a time simply means a good and memorable moment, one youll recall fondly.But to experience a whale of time while actually among whales, or at least while visiting a neighborhood thats known to have some mega mammalian visitors, is, well, double-whale-rrific.To up your whale-y wonder, you only need board a whale-watching expedition. Southern California is home to many, and when December arrives, the boats are in full, lets-find-a-whale mode.For thats when grey whale season officially kicks off along our coast, thanks to the migratory schedule of these gentle, blowhole-blessed giants. And if youve been thinking youd like some whale-person interaction, take note: Dana Wharf Sportfishing & Whale Watching has quite a whale of a deal on during December 2019.Its no fluke: Kids 12 and under can join a whale adventure for free, all month long. The asterisks This deal covers two tots in your party, and, for sure, there needs to be a paid adult in that same party, too.Dana Point is billed as the Dolphin and Whale Watching Capital of the World, and while whale sightings are never guaranteed, enjoying a brisk and bracing day out on the waves is quite zingy, and good for anecdote-building, if youd like to have a few new family stories to share this holiday season.For all the prices and dates, visit the adventure company now. And if your twelfth month is terrifically busy, and you just cant make this whale of a deal, be not blue, er, grey: Grey whale season will swim right through to the end of April.And while this deal will end with the end of the year, you can find four more months of mammal-tastic good times out on the open water, as trips with Dana Wharf Sportfishing & Whale Watching will continue throughout the season.Photo Credit: Carla Mitroff

Flying to Aspen from LAXBest settle in with some magazines and music, for jetting over to the storied Colorado hamlet will take just over 120 minutes. Cyber Monday Sales on Track to Hit Record And driving Load up on the snacks, and find a friend to spend the night with in Utah, because youll be on the road for 16 or 17 hours.But sipping a cocktail that is reminiscent of the sort of libation youd find at a cozy, Aspen-based lodgeYou can do that in Hollywood, at Ever Bar at The Kimpton Everly Hotel, through the end of December 2019.For the chic hangout has taken on some of the vibes of a mountain-town getaway, at least via a month-long menu that is full of flavorful and fancy holiday drinks.The most notable of the bunch Well, name-wise, for sure, it is the Hans Gruber, an elegant egg nog concoction that is spiky as the iconic Alan Rickman character seen and loved in Die Hard.Other brrr-beautiful beverages on the limited-time line-up include the Winter Solstice think Casa Noble Reposado Tequila, Pierre Ferand Dry Curacao, Chocolate Bitters and Flamed Lemon and Boots with Fur Lairds Apple Brandy is the vibe, plus Gran Classico, Lemon, Birch Bark Syrup, Black Walnut, Peychauds, Rosemary.Each drink is $18 unless noted.Can you get to Aspen on eighteen bucksIts not a likely proposition.But raising a Hans Gruber, in the heart of Hollywood, can be done. Throw on your snuggliest and chicest throw, the kind of wrap youd wear around the stylish, peak-close town, and make for this CO-meets-CA pop-up now.Photo Credit: Ever Bar