Mutts Encouraged

Dog-friendly Austin bar to host DNA test raffle and breed reveal

Dog owners and onlookers will find out what breeds the dogs are together.

Mutts Canine Cantina Facebook

Identifying your beloved mutt's DNA is just a want — no matter how strong — so the more than $100 kit may be a hard sell for some. Austin's Emancipet clinic is helping answer the burning question for free at an event on August 16, when it will give away 20 dog DNA test kits at Mutts Canine Cantina.

The winners will be determined via a raffle. Entries cost a minimum of $10 as a donation to Emancipet, a nonprofit that works on getting pet owners affordable vet care in Texas and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. More entries are available with more donations.

This event, held at a combination dog park and outdoor bar, is taking advantage of Austinites' natural curiosity about mixed dog breeds and making the tests an active part of the event. The 20 winners must be present with their dogs during the drawing so that event organizers can photograph them and collect their samples, taken via mouth swab. The photos will be shared on social media for a guessing game.

A second party on August 20 will reveal the results of the tests, which are made by Embark. The results will include more than 350 breeds, types, and varieties, plus other indicators that may help predict health risks. Pet owners and onlookers will find out the breeds together, for a fun and suspenseful event.

“We are thrilled to be working with Embark on this unique fundraiser for Emancipet,” said Katy Catney, director of donor experience for Emancipet, in a press release. “We look forward to giving more pet owners the opportunity to get closer to their dogs by knowing what they’re made of. A big thank you to our sponsor, Subaru of Georgetown, and our host venue, MUTTS Canine Cantina Austin for their assistance in bringing dog families together for an evening of learning, discovery, celebration all in support of a good cause.”

Dog owners can purchase entries to the raffle at betterunite.com. Both events will be held at Mutts Canine Cantina (9825 N. Lake Creek Pkwy.). The raffle event takes place August 16 from 7-10 pm. A time has not been included for the August 20 reveal event. More information is available at emancipet.org.

Defensive Driving

Austin-based Tesla faces new probe focused on remote driving feature

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The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is investigating 2.6 million Teslas.

Federal regulators have opened an investigation into 2.6 million Teslas after reports of crashes involving the use of company technology that allows drivers to remotely command their vehicle to return to them, or move to another location, using a phone app.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration also said Tuesday, January 7 that Austin-based Tesla did not report any of the accidents. Tesla is under order to report crashes on “publicly accessible roads” involving vehicles being operated through its autonomous driving technology.

The new investigation follows another probe launched in October looking into the company's “Full Self-Driving” system after getting reports of crashes in low-visibility conditions, including one that killed a pedestrian. That investigation covers 2.4 million Teslas from the 2016 through 2024 model years.

Tesla did not respond to a request for comment from The Associated Press.

One driver filed a complaint after a crash while using Tesla's “Actually Smart Summon” technology and NHTSA is looking into another three similar incidents based on media reports, the NHTSA said. The agency is looking into 12 total incidents reported by users of the technology.

Each of the vehicles failed to detect posts and other parked vehicles, according to the NHTSA.

Regulators say the vehicles struck objects because the users had "too little reaction time to avoid a crash, either with the available line of sight or releasing the phone app button, which stops the vehicle’s movement.”

Shares of Tesla Inc. slid more than 4 percent in late afternoon trading Tuesday.

Musk has complained that U.S. regulations are too onerous and are holding back the development of self-driving cars. Ethics experts are worried that once President-elect Donald Trump takes office, Musk will push him to ease oversight of Tesla, which just suffered its first decline in annual sales in more than a decade.

Musk donated an estimated $250 million to Trump's presidential campaign and is a frequent guest at Trump's Mar-a-Lago, vetting cabinet nominees and meeting with foreign heads of state. Trump has put Musk in charge of an advisory group, the Department of Government Efficiency, that will recommend where to cut government expenses and staff at federal agencies and reduce regulation.

The NHTSA said it will look into the top speed that Teslas can reach when users deploy its “summons” technology, as well as restrictions on public roads and line of sights requirements. It also said it expects to check for any “connectivity delays" with the app that could result in increased stopping distance.

Tesla’s Model 3 owner’s manual says that its “summons” feature is designed for use only in parking lots and driveways on private property and is disabled on public roads.

The new probe covers 2016-2025 Model S and X vehicles, 2017-2025 Model 3, 2020-2025 Model Y equipped with Tesla's Full Self-Driving driver assistance system.

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