ALVA Woodpeckers build home in Alva woman’s house You may have heard of squatters, but this woman is dealing with squawkers. Who needs a rooster to wake up when you have woodpeckers?
FORT MYERS Man claims he was trapped in a high-rise for 5 days A 77-year-old man wants justice after he claims he spent days trapped on the 24th floor of a high-rise apartment building.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte Correctional prisoner arrested for death of another inmate State Attorney Amira Fox convened a grand jury, which decided to move forward with a case against a Charlotte Correctional inmate.
SANIBEL Construction near Dairy Queen eagle nest on Sanibel raises concerns While many eagle nests may be a bit difficult to see, one nest has always been a favorite for Sanibel residents and tourists.
The environmental effects of artificial sweeteners Experts are studying how the foods we eat affect the environment, especially after we flush our waste down the toilet.
Victim reacts to man exposing himself to her Ring camera You get a notification on your phone from your ring camera app that someone is at the door, only to find out it is someone exposing themselves. It’s the last thing victim Maria Kivi wanted or expected to see last week.
LEE COUNTY The art of capturing your eye and drawing you in How do you capture young, hip, trendy, fun, movers and shakers, all in a pose? We take you behind the scenes of a Gulfshore Life cover shoot.
FORT MYERS The lives of two SJC Boxers changed in the ring Two SJC Boxers, Mario Nunez and Arbon Kurtishi, help each other in the ring as each of them had their lives changed because of boxing.
FORT MYERS Chlamydia cases rising sharply in Lee County If you think about a crowded space- something with more than 250 people- if it’s in Lee county, statistically one person has chlamydia.
SANIBEL Sanibel resort day passes hope to get more business on the island A pass will allow vacationers to hang out at a Sanibel beach club for a day in hopes of drumming up some business.
Voting equipment tested ahead of Lee County elections Voting equipment is being tested in Lee County. This is to ensure all ballots are printed and counted correctly for the upcoming election.
Collier County teen assaulted after leaving party The teen has been charged and the sheriff’s office said they’re aware that many believe felony charges are in order, but under Florida law, there are very specific criteria that must be met for felony charges to be filed.
WINK weather team watching tropical wave over Atlantic Ocean The Weather Authority is watching a tropical disturbance over the Central Atlantic Ocean.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral drug bust leads investigators to fake fentanyl, cash and guns Cape Coral man arrest on drug charges. Investigators said they found, guns, drugs, and more than $32,000 in Richard Riley’s home.
NAPLES Naples youth flag football team to compete in Ohio tournament This weekend, the Naples Lunatics Green will compete in the Superhero Sports tournament in Canton, Ohio.
ALVA Woodpeckers build home in Alva woman’s house You may have heard of squatters, but this woman is dealing with squawkers. Who needs a rooster to wake up when you have woodpeckers?
FORT MYERS Man claims he was trapped in a high-rise for 5 days A 77-year-old man wants justice after he claims he spent days trapped on the 24th floor of a high-rise apartment building.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte Correctional prisoner arrested for death of another inmate State Attorney Amira Fox convened a grand jury, which decided to move forward with a case against a Charlotte Correctional inmate.
SANIBEL Construction near Dairy Queen eagle nest on Sanibel raises concerns While many eagle nests may be a bit difficult to see, one nest has always been a favorite for Sanibel residents and tourists.
The environmental effects of artificial sweeteners Experts are studying how the foods we eat affect the environment, especially after we flush our waste down the toilet.
Victim reacts to man exposing himself to her Ring camera You get a notification on your phone from your ring camera app that someone is at the door, only to find out it is someone exposing themselves. It’s the last thing victim Maria Kivi wanted or expected to see last week.
LEE COUNTY The art of capturing your eye and drawing you in How do you capture young, hip, trendy, fun, movers and shakers, all in a pose? We take you behind the scenes of a Gulfshore Life cover shoot.
FORT MYERS The lives of two SJC Boxers changed in the ring Two SJC Boxers, Mario Nunez and Arbon Kurtishi, help each other in the ring as each of them had their lives changed because of boxing.
FORT MYERS Chlamydia cases rising sharply in Lee County If you think about a crowded space- something with more than 250 people- if it’s in Lee county, statistically one person has chlamydia.
SANIBEL Sanibel resort day passes hope to get more business on the island A pass will allow vacationers to hang out at a Sanibel beach club for a day in hopes of drumming up some business.
Voting equipment tested ahead of Lee County elections Voting equipment is being tested in Lee County. This is to ensure all ballots are printed and counted correctly for the upcoming election.
Collier County teen assaulted after leaving party The teen has been charged and the sheriff’s office said they’re aware that many believe felony charges are in order, but under Florida law, there are very specific criteria that must be met for felony charges to be filed.
WINK weather team watching tropical wave over Atlantic Ocean The Weather Authority is watching a tropical disturbance over the Central Atlantic Ocean.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral drug bust leads investigators to fake fentanyl, cash and guns Cape Coral man arrest on drug charges. Investigators said they found, guns, drugs, and more than $32,000 in Richard Riley’s home.
NAPLES Naples youth flag football team to compete in Ohio tournament This weekend, the Naples Lunatics Green will compete in the Superhero Sports tournament in Canton, Ohio.
Kentucky Derby 2017: One-eyed Patch aiming for glory in $2.4 million race. Photo via CNN (CNN) When three-year-old thoroughbred Patch takes to the starting gate at this year’s Kentucky Derby Saturday, many people — be it in the stands or watching on TV — probably won’t be aware that this is a very special horse. At the left-hand side of Patch’s head is a dark hole — about the size of a golf ball — where his eye used to be. As a two-year-old, Patch developed an ulcer in his left eye that, despite the best possible medical care, didn’t respond to treatment. Eventually, in June 2016, the colt had his eye removed after trainer Todd Pletcher decided nothing more could be done to save it. Recovery Trevor Breen rode one-eyed showjumper Adventure De Kannan to victory in the 2014 Hickstead Derby and he says the adaption for a horse after losing an eye is more of a mental than a physical one. “I think the heart, mind and attitude of the horse are big factors in the recovery,” Breen told CNN. “The first thing is the obvious one really, they’ve just got to come to terms with it. “What they used to be able to see, they now can’t. Horses are very good at adapting and I think they sometimes deserve a lot more credit than we give them. “The key to it all is the mind of the horse. If they have a really good attitude and that they want to do the job that you want them to do, then they’ll find a way to do it.” Patch, who was coincidentally given his name before losing an eye, is ranked as an outside — but not impossible — 30-1 shot along with three other horses. Two other runners, Fast and Accurate and Sonneteer are given odds of 50-1. One-eyed Patch aiming for glory in $2.4 million race. Photo via CNN Rewinding the clock Breen is eager to stress that every horse is different and although Adventure De Kannan seamlessly transitioned from two eyes to one, that might not be the case for other horses. Both Adventure De Kannan and Patch suffered from eye ulcers, meaning the gradual decline of sight in one eye made the post-operation transition more manageable. Before Adventure De Kannan lost his eye, Breen says he had been trying, unsuccessfully, to win the Hickstead Derby — considered one of the premier events of the equestrian calendar — for four years. Then he and Adventure De Kannan — less than a year after having the eye removed — claimed the title for the first time. “When we took the eye out it was like I rewound the clock about three or four years,” Breen recalls. “He got cheeky again, he was like a new person. “He was such a good-natured horse, he’d never let you know he was depressed. But it must have been affecting him and as soon as we took it out, he was in super form straight away. “He had a cheekiness and a swagger about him. He was definitely better after the eye went out. You think with yourself, if you have a pain in one place all the time you’d be nearly going through depression.” Upsetting the odds Though showjumping and flat racing are different disciplines entirely, parallels can be drawn between the recovery procees of both Adventure De Kannan and Patch. And after overcoming considerable odds to reach America’s $2.4 million race, don’t bet against Patch doing it again on Saturday. “It’s a credit to him and his professionalism that he was able to adapt so seamlessly to it,” his trainer Pletcher told Reuters. “I was concerned that it might compromise his ability in some way or the way he carried himself. I guess you don’t know for sure but it certainly doesn’t seem like it has.” “He’s a remarkable horse to lose his left eye in the middle of last summer and recover as quickly as he did. It seems to never faze him.”