Sundaymail Editor
SCIENTISTS say they have successfully “potty trained” cows to urinate in a designated toilet area as part of a programme aimed at slashing greenhouse gas emissions.
The team of New Zealand and German researchers admitted the idea began as a joke but said dealing with cows’ nitrogen-rich liquid waste could have genuine long-term climate benefits.
“If we could collect 10 or 20 percent of urinations, it would be sufficient to reduce greenhouse gas emission and nitrate leaching significantly,” Auckland University’s Douglas Elliffe said.
Elliffe said the nitrogen in cow pee broke down into two problem substances over time — nitrous oxide, a potent greenhouse gas, and nitrate, which collects in soil then leaches into rivers and streams.
Nitrous oxide accounts for about 5 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions.
Researcher Lindsay Matthews said the idea of toilet training cows so their urine could be captured and treated first occurred to him when a radio host was interviewing him in 2007 and made a throwaway joke on the matter.
“People’s reaction is ‘crazy scientists’ but actually the building blocks are there,” he said.
Working with colleagues in Germany, the scientists used food rewards to train 16 calves to urinate in a latrine pen, saying the results were similar to those you would expect from a three-year-old child.
Elliffe said the research, published last week in the journal Current Biology, provided “proof of concept” that toilet training cows was possible.
He said the challenge was to upscale the concept to train large herds and adapt it for cows in environments such as New Zealand, where the animals live outdoors rather than spending most of their time in barns.
Farming creates about half of New Zealand’s greenhouse emissions, mostly in the form of methane and nitrous oxide.
The South Pacific country has numerous research projects examining possible solutions, such as breeding low-methane emitting livestock, using feeds that reduce emissions and even vaccinating animals so they produce less harmful gases.
Breakup threats over
Covid-19 vaccine
A woman said that her boyfriend has threatened to break up with her if she gets her second dose of the Covid vaccine – even though she needs it to continue her education.
Sharing her story anonymously, the woman said that she had been with her boyfriend for just over a year, and that he recently made the threat after she had her first jab.
Initially, she thought he must be joking, but as time went by he became increasingly misinformed about the pandemic and was sceptical about the vaccine.
Now the woman feels as if she is stuck, as she wants to stay with her boyfriend but needs the jab to continue with her education — and has turned to the internet for advice.
Taking to Reddit, she said: “A couple of weeks ago he made a comment about how he would break up with me if I got my second Covid shot.
“I am not sure if he was joking or not, since he has made jokes about us breaking up before, but I feel like he could be serious. I need to be double vaccinated in order to get medical work and go to school.
“I try not to talk about it much just to avoid conflict since a lot of things turn into fights with him, but he says stuff about how it’s going to cause fertility issues with me, while also saying he doesn’t want children.
“I am not really sure what to do. I do want to still be with him and I am nervous that he will actually break up with me if I do get it.
”But I need to get it to continue my medical things and be able to go to school.
“I haven’t said anything to him or asked if he was serious because I am afraid of the outcome. I haven’t said anything to the people close to me, due to fear of what they would say.
“I feel very stuck and lost and feel like I am potentially creating an ultimatum myself.”
After sharing her story online, other Reddit users came forward to say that the woman should get the vaccine — and should leave her boyfriend.
One said: “That right there is all the reason in the world to dump his sorry a**. Being an idiot about the vaccine is another good reason. Ditch this loser once and for all, and move on with your life.”
While a second said: “Get the second vaccine. Besides, if he’s going to break up with you over just that, you are dodging a bullet.”
Mom murders her two daughters
An Arizona mother has been named a suspect in her two daughters’ murders after they were found dead in a bed.
On September 8, shortly before 6pm, Phoenix police received a 911 call from a father reporting that his two daughters were dead, according to Sgt Andy Williams.
Upon arrival, officers found the girls’ bodies in a bed and their mother with self-inflicted stab wounds to her upper body.
The girls showed no obvious sign of trauma. Their cause and manner of death remains unknown.
Their father was initially detained but released after cooperating with police.
The girls have since been identified as Aleyah (9) and her little sister, Royal McIntyre (4).
“Unfortunately, I came home to a devastating situation where my daughters were deceased and their mother critically injured. At this point, there are still more questions than answers. I know you all want to know the story as do I,” the girls’ father, Michael Coleman, wrote on a GoFundMe page.
“I’m turning to a GoFundMe in hopes in giving my innocent daughters a proper burial. I swallow my pride and leave myself with the common man in asking for help. At this point, I am unsure of what to do or how to proceed. I know my situation has been publicly announced, I thank everyone for their compassion and interest as I continue to strive to get all the answers even for myself at this point. Thank you for your consideration, prayers and well wishes. God Bless you all.”
The girls’ mother, who has not been identified, remains hospitalised in stable condition.
She is currently the sole suspect in her daughters’ deaths, according to Arizona Republic.
“They are angels now,” neighbour Teri Potter told AZFamily.com.
“I didn’t know them. I just know that there’s kids involved and it’s really upsetting that this could happen. I mean their whole family’s going through it.” — Wires
Online Reporter