Stories you might have missed from around Wisconsin.
East Troy: Rare white buck spotted.

We’ve all been driving and had an animal catch our eye. It could be anything, but imagine seeing an animal you’ve never seen before. That happened to Kelly daniels and her husband Friday evening near their home in East Troy. Daniels told the Journal Sentinel that as they were driving she saw something bright white chomping on grass behind a brush pile. It turned out to be an all white buck with white, felted antlers. They turned their car around and watched the buck from their car for about 45 minutes. Daniels said she’s seen white does before, but never a buck. There are two reasons a deer can appear all white. First they could have albinism, a condition that leaves it with no pigment, or it is “piebald” meaning it’s mostly or partially white with brown spots. Full Story
Maple: Predator-proof fence protecting cattle.
Farmers have a lot of things that can affect their business, from weather, to the price of crops and for livestocks farmers, predators. The Soyring family has been farming in Maple since 1904. For five generations they’ve grown crops, raised dairy cows and more recently raise and tend to beef cattle. They’ve also had to contend with a growing Gray wolf problem that has threatened their herd. Last year the Soyrings lost 6 animals to wolves. Most of their grazing pastures are enclosed with standard 4-wire fence, but at the center of the farm is a 36 acre enclosure surrounded by a “predator proof” fence. The fence, designed by two DNR Wildlife damage specialists. It is too tall for wolves to jump over and has a smaller mesh size to keep smaller predators out. The most important feature is the apron extends across the ground keeping animals from burrowing under the fence. This was the sixth fence of this type to be built in Wisconsin. Soybring says he’s very happy with the results. Full Story
Madison: Songwriting workshop to foster musicians scheduled for August.
American Roots music might not be the most popular style nowadays, but Red-Wing Blackbird Records in Madison is committed to nurturing and celebrating the tradition of folk, country, bluegrass and Appalachian music. To forward their goal, they announced that former Madison resident Katie Powderly will return to teach a songwriting workshop. According to RWBR, Powderly exemplifies their commitment to the music. The workshop is open to all skill levels, including people who have never written a song before. Attendees will receive personal feedback, educational materials and connections to other songwriters. The workshop is August 11 from 11-2. Full Story
Milwaukee: Downtown off-leash dog park begins construction in August.
Soon you’ll be able to let Rover off the leash and let them run and play with other doggies. Construction of a new Milwaukee downtown dog park is scheduled to begin in August. The park will be located under 794, just west of the Milwaukee River. The Milwaukee Downtown Business Improvement District and the Historic Third ward Business Improvement District are leading the project. Groundbreaking for the $760,000 project will take place next month and the project will take about four months to complete. The dog park will be just north of Foxtown Landing, the planned site of Foxtown Brewing’s taproom, distillery and restaurant. Foxtown Brewing is an affiliate of Mequon based pet food manufacturer Fromm Nieman Brands. Fromm Family Pet foods is the title sponsor of the dog park. Full Story