Here's a few really ridiculous animal-related news stories I've seen/read.

This one is about an overreaction when someone's pet ball python got loose, and the unnecessary drama that unfolds. For some background info, ball pythons are normally 3-5ft in length, and it's not very common to find one 6ft or more. Ball pythons have very tiny teeth, and the most you'll get are some shallow scratches, even from a big one. There really wasn't any reason to get all your kids and pets and get out of the park, or even try to get rid of the snake in such a manner.
Original story w/ video: http://www.nbc4i.com/story/22685736/...bile-home-park
Follow-up story: http://www.athensnews.com/ohio/artic...e-apprehe.html

This one is about a Shiba Inu that got mistaken as a coyote, and released into the wild.
http://www.wkyt.com/news/headlines/9...9.html?ref=159

This one really made me shake my head sadly. They found a ball python in a car, and pretended like it was a big, mean boa constrictor or "red tail boa". A 4ft snake isn't really all that big at all, and the snake was very docile in the footage. Just some ordinary news fear-mongering.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-19710487

Feel free to share your own news stories, or personal experiences of the same nature.