Our lovely neighbors to the north have been having a rough go at it. Locals have been discovering all kinds of unpleasant things you'd rather not find in your back-yard. First five severed feet washed ashore on area beaches, and now a new case of mad cow disease has been confirmed at a B.C. farm.

Canadian officials believe this is an isolated case, which has not spread to other animals, much less humans. Still, these are not the kind of stories you want in the press at the beginning of the summer tourist season. Come visit our beautiful beaches and bucolic countryside, eh? Maybe not.

Photo Courtesy of Flickr Photographer Sofia Smith