See the end of this post for an update on the host of two Sportsman Channel shows questioning the mako catch, calling for state regulation of waters off Huntington Beach.

ORIGINAL POST, JUNE 6, 10:21 A.M.: The teevee and funny papers were filled this week with stories about a 1,300-pound, likely record-breaking mako shark being caught of Huntington Beach.

But now comes the inevitable blowback from conservationists, who believe the shark should have been released.

"I'm a little shocked by it," the director of a Bay Area-based nonprofit that advocates shark protection reportedly said.

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You never know what you'll find tucked in a corner of your garage: a shattered holiday bulb, an unstrung wooden tennis racket, a rabid bat ...

A 15-year-old Costa Mesa boy was recently treated for exposure to rabies after his mother learned he'd touched a bat he'd found in their garage.

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Former police officer Kevin Michael Sianez pleaded guilty Thursday to 17 felony counts of grand theft by false pretense, 11 felony counts of fraudulently using an access card, two felony counts of identity theft, four felony counts of possession of a firearm by a felon stemming from a 1998 conviction for stalking, six felony counts of obtaining services through false representation, one felony count each of perjury by declaration, computer access and fraud, and possession of ammunition by a prohibited person, one misdemeanor count each of unlawful representation as a private investigator, engaging in the business of private investigation, and doing business without a valid license with sentencing enhancements for aggravated white collar crime over $100,000 and property damage over $65,000.

But we don't care about all that; we want to know what happened to the dog-fucking counts.

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Former astronaut Mark Kelly and his wife Gabrielle Giffords have become national spokespeople for gun control since the former congresswoman out of Arizona was nearly shot to death in a January 2011 assassination attempt that took six lives and injured 11 others. Now the high-profile couple finds themselves on the other end of deadly victimization, as a bulldog mix belonging to Kelly's daughter/Giffords' stepdaughter reportedly killed a sea lion near Montage resort in Laguna Beach.

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Not quite a whale doing the backstroke in your soup, it was still a rare spectacle none the same Monday when a whale and dolphins were seen playing together in front of passengers and crew on a Dana Point Harbor sightseeing boat.

"It was pretty amazing," remarked eyewitness Patti Soltero of Eastvale. "Definitely a lifetime experience."

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You may have seen the reports on the recent giant squid invasion in Orange County waters.

We included video of this from one boat operator out of Dana Harbor.

Now a second has posted an eye-opening video of its own, but it's not of giant squid wreaking havoc but a "dolphin stampede."

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A grandfather who really let his Santa Ana house go--the smell of urine, feces and dead stuff from 110 roaming cats--copped to misdemeanor counts of child abuse and endangerment and was sentenced to three years probation. But should John Ed Howe violate the terms of his probation, the 69-year-old faces two years behind bars. Four other family members have charges pending from what authorities called an illegal cat-rescue operation.

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Videos of sea life taken from aboard Dana Wharf Sport Fishing boats often go viral, with 11 million YouTube views to date.

The star of the latest out of Dana Harbor is supposed to be one of the giant Humbolt squids plucked from the surface of Orange Coast waters in recent weeks, but we would award a best supporting role to a non-squid.

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People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is boasting about the role of animal activists in uncovering cruel conditions at a Rancho Santa Margarita exotic pet company's Lake Elsinore breeding facility, where a city inspection ended with more than 18,400 rodents and about 600 reptiles (mostly snakes) being euthanized. Decaying animal carcasses and nearly dead creatures were among the inhabitants discovered by code enforcement last week at Global Captive Breeders, according to Lake Elsinore City Manager Grant Yates.

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In light of three serval cats, who resemble small cheetahs, escaping from a Los Alamitos apartment recently, Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez (D-Garden Grove) today renewed her call for a federal law prohibiting private possession of big cats except at facilities like accredited zoos. "This incident in Orange County is alarming and underscores the need for better regulation of private ownership of big cats," Sanchez says in a statement from her office.

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