Monday 02/06/12

Human Interest News   —   Posted on February 6, 2012

Sheep herding Swedish bunny becomes online hit

STOCKHOLM — Champis the bunny doesn’t only hop — he also knows how to herd his masters’ flock of sheep, possibly having picked up the skill after watching trained dogs do the job.

The 5-year-old pet rabbit from the small village of Kal in northern Sweden shot to online fame last week, having garnered more than 700,000 YouTube hits so far, after a clip of his sheep herding skills surfaced on a blog.

The June video shows a persistent Champis running back and forth on the farm, trying to keep Nils-Erik and Greta Vigren’s sheep together.

Greta Vigren said she first noted his talent last spring when they let out the sheep to graze for the first time after the long Swedish winter.

“He just started to behave like a sheepdog,” she recalled.

Dan Westman, a sheepdog breeder who shot and posted the video of his friends’ bunny, said he was in awe when he first witnessed the phenomenon, noting Champis does the job even better than most dogs would.

“It’s really incredible, it’s a herding rabbit,” he said. “He rounds them up, and if they get close to escaping through the gate he sometimes stops them,” he said.

“I mean I work with sheepdogs and know how hard this is. There are very few dogs that could do what this rabbit does.”

Watch Champis hearding sheep:

Kobayashi downs record 337 wings at Wing Bowl XX

Competitive-eating champ Takeru Kobayashi conquered Philadelphia’s annual gustatory gorge-fest by eating 337 chicken wings in a half-hour before a crowd of nearly 20,000 at Wing Bowl XX.

The Japanese phenom demolished the record of 255 set last year by Jonathan “Super” Squibb.

The Friday morning extravaganza (Feb. 3rd) drew thousands to the Wells Fargo Center before sunrise to watch competitors stuff themselves with chicken wings.

Kobayashi claimed a $20,000 cash prize for his victory. It was the six-time Nathan’s Hot Dog eating contest champ’s first time competing at Wing Bowl, though he consumed a cheesesteak in 24 seconds as part of an eating exhibition last year.

Squibb had been trying to win his fourth consecutive Wing Bowl crown, but the Berlin, N.J., man finished a distant second with 271 wings.

Ever think you’ve had a bad day?

— you have nothing on this guy.

A New Zealand sailboat repair man wound up being taken on an unexpected trip to the South Pole after the yacht’s captain suddenly set sail with him aboard.

The repair man is in big trouble. The captain is a self-described “Viking” who refuses to turn back — and whose last trip ended with three crew members dead.

This isn’t the kind of fish tale most people would brag about.

Anglers at an ice-fishing tournament in Michigan were amazed when only a single fish was caught during the competition, even though 400 people had entered.

The sole catch of the day — a 4 1/2-pound perch — was good for the $3,000 first (and only) prize for the biggest fish.

A dog was set to be the star witness in a lawsuit over a cat.

The English pooch named Hamish was expected to “testify” in a dispute among neighbors over ownership of the year-old tabby.

Unfortunately, Hamish died shortly before the court date.

From The Boston Herald and The NY Post.