WEIRD STUFF: Monkey found abandoned in laundry bag

Monkey found abandoned in laundry bag

A tiny monkey discovered abandoned inside a laundry bag on a London bus has sparked fears that more animals could be dumped following changes to ownership laws.

The female common marmoset was found last week on a 302 bus in Kensal Rise, leaving animal welfare officials concerned about the impact of new licensing rules.

RSPCA London chief investigator Clare Dew, who is leading the investigation, said the abandonment appeared deliberate.

She explained: “It was clearly intentional.

“This is clearly a direct result of the new legislation and is something we feared would happen. I’d be surprised if it’s the last primate we see being dumped.”

The warning comes after legislation introduced in April required all primates kept in England to be licensed.

Animal welfare groups fear some owners who cannot meet the new requirements may abandon their pets rather than surrender them properly.

The rescued monkey, named Oyster, was found in poor condition after being left alone.

Dew said: “She’d been left with some apple but was, understandably, very stressed and dehydrated.”

Despite her difficult start, Oyster has now been moved to a specialist sanctuary where she is receiving care.

In an unexpected twist, the rescue came at the perfect time for another animal.

Dew said: “In a twist of fate, a sanctuary had been working with us to find a suitable female marmoset to introduce to a lone male they were caring for.”

She explained that another planned rehoming had fallen through, allowing Oyster to take its place.

Dew said: “We were hoping to transfer one from the north of England but, when that fell through just a few hours before Oyster was rescued, it looked like destiny that Oyster was supposed to go there.

“She’s settled in really well over the weekend, and is eating well, so hopefully she’ll be able to meet her new friend soon. If she isn’t claimed, then she’ll remain there with experienced keepers, a wonderful enclosure and company.”

Terrified mum hid boarding pass to avoid flight

A mother’s fear of flying became so overwhelming that she once deliberately hid her own boarding pass in a desperate attempt to avoid getting on a plane.

Debbie Adamson, 67, has battled aerophobia — an extreme fear of flying — for decades, after a terrifying first flight experience left her convinced that every aircraft she boarded would crash.

The mom was supposed to catch a flight to Florida when panic took over and she hatched a plan to escape the journey.

But instead of being allowed to go home, her clever trick only resulted in a replacement ticket being issued.

Looking back on the experience, Debbie said her fear began during her first-ever flight as a student.

She told the Daily Mirror newspaper: “When I was a student, I flew to Budapest and we had the world’s worst flight, it was my first flight and I was on my own. When we landed it bounced down the wrong way and there were sparks coming off the wing tips and it was lurching. It was your horror come true.

“From that point onwards, I thought every aeroplane I ever got on was going to crash. It was shocking and it was horrible. After that, I didn’t want to go anywhere on a plane ever again, I was terrified. I then went and married a theme park addict and I made myself go on those flights for my family. It was the flight crew that was my coping strategy.

“When I had to fly during this terrified period, I would tell the stewardess [about my phobia] when I went through the door if I wasn’t [already] crying. My husband used to come off every flight with permanent arthritis in his hands where I’d be holding onto him so tightly.”

Despite her fear, Debbie forced herself to fly for the sake of her family — but one trip pushed her anxiety to the limit.

While waiting at Gatwick Airport, she decided to make her boarding pass disappear.

She recalled: “One time I was sitting at the airport and said ‘I need to go into the bathroom’. I veered into WH Smith and I had my boarding pass with me and I put it in a girly magazine where I thought no one would ever look on the top shelf.

“I came weeping back saying ‘I’ve lost my boarding pass, I can’t go’. My kids all started crying. We got to an airline representative and said ‘can you help, she’s lost her boarding pass?’. There I was thinking they’d say ‘she’s got to go home’ but they printed me another one.”

Woman denied entry to restaurant

A woman says she was left stunned after being refused entry to a restaurant because she could not provide physical identification.

Lia Clark, 22, claimed she was blocked from entering Gourmet Burger Kitchen at the Trafford Centre in Manchester, England, despite wanting only to order food.

According to Lia, staff requested ID because the restaurant serves alcohol, but she was unable to provide anything except a screenshot of her passport.

Sharing her frustration in a TikTok video, she said she could not believe the situation.

Lia said: “I’m not being funny or nothing but is this actually real life?

“We’ve come [to] the Trafford [Centre], yeah? We’re trying to come in here to eat a burger. No alcohol, nothing - a chicken burger.”

The young woman said she was shocked by the decision and warned others that they may need identification even when visiting simply for a meal.

She added: “I am shell-shocked, I have never heard nothing like that in my whole life. So ,if you want to come here for food, make sure you’ve got ID with you for a burger.”

Her video quickly went viral, with millions of views and divided reactions from viewers.

Some users agreed with Lia, with one person commenting: “A restaurant with a kids menu IDing people I’ve heard it all now. (sic)”

However, others defended the employee, arguing that staff were only following company rules and licensing requirements.

One poster said: “That’s a really mad policy, feel sorry for the minimum wage lad for having to enforce it.”

Gourmet Burger Kitchen responded to the backlash, explaining that its licensing conditions require checks to ensure customers meet age requirements.