Written by DJ Becker – OAKHURST – A third little brown bat in Madera County has tested positive for rabies, according to authorities. This one was found in a backyard on Evergreen Drive off Road 426 in Oakhurst. Madera County Animal Services Director Kirsten Gross said the bat was found still alive but died shortly after the resident’s three dogs ...

MODESTO – Smoke from the County Fire near Napa Valley is affecting air quality in locations throughout the northern and central San Joaquin Valley – notably Mariposa and Merced Counties in our area – prompting local air pollution officials to issue a health cautionary statement Valley-wide. As of this posting, the County Fire has burned over 44,500 acres and is ...

I’ve run into an amazing number of people recently suffering from plantar fasciitis (one of those Greek phrases meaning inflammation of the connective tissue on the bottom of the foot). I’ve had this condition and most people I know have either struggled with it themselves or are closely related to someone who has. It can take a year to fully ...

Everyone I know has been breathing a sigh of relief for the rain that has once again filled our wells and reservoirs, while bracing for the impact of summer sunshine on the landscape. If you haven’t already lined someone up to take care of the weed whacking, you may want to get that on your “to do” list. And while you’re ...

MADERA – A bat found near the track at Yosemite High School has tested positive for rabies. Kirsten Gross, Director of Madera County Animal Services, says the bat was found last week lying on the track, not moving, but still alive. It was taken to the Madera County Health Department for testing. This is the second rabid bat reported in ...

OAKHURST — Permaculture designer and educator Marianna Burrett shares her passion in the second of two workshops focusing on connection to nature and — literally — planting the seeds of health. Organized by nonprofit One Tribe Global, the workshop is on Saturday, Mar. 24, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Community Room at the Oakhurst Branch Library. An earlier ...

MARIPOSA — John C. Fremont Healthcare District is pleased to announce a new service now available in Mariposa at John C. Fremont Hospital – bone density screening. The District recently installed a Hologic Discovery Bone Densitometry machine in a new suite of the Imaging Services department. Bone density screenings are a preventative test to help people keep their bones healthy ...

OAKHURST — Permaculture designer and educator Marianna Burrett shares her passion in the first of a two workshops focusing on connection to nature and planting the seeds of health. Organized by nonprofit One Tribe Global, the initial workshop is on Saturday, Feb. 17, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Community Room at the Oakhurst Branch Library. Another follows in ...

OAKHURST — The local nonprofit organization One Tribe Global is offering a trio of courses on health and nature. The classes include Manifestation of Health, Seeds of Health – Connection to Nature, and Seeds of Health – From Concept to Action. The three-hour sessions are held at the Oakhurst Library in the Community Room, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. ...

CLOVIS — When 29-year-old Alyse Ornelas was rushed to the emergency room with shortness of breath and chest pain, no one could have suspected that the seemingly healthy young woman, at 23 weeks pregnant, was experiencing heart failure. On Sept. 26, Alyse – a YHS graduate and now a middle school teacher – was admitted to Clovis Community Regional Medical ...