It's just about time for bird lovers to head out with their clipboards. Christmas Bird Counts begin next Thursday and they will be taking place in communities all over the province and beyond. Birder Alain Clavette spoke with Vanessa Vander Valk.

The Para Hockey Cup is wrapping up at the Qplex in Quispamsis this weekend. Aaron Kennedy is with the town and spoke with Vannessa Vander Valk.

We'll hear about a community effort in Tobique First Nation to keep kids warm this winter.

The New Brunswick SPCA says the number of people abandoning pets when they move has more than doubled this year. They are urging people to reach out for help if they need it, rather than putting pets in harm's way. We speak to Chief Animal Protection Officer Tony Porter.

We'll hear from a resident of St. Stephen who lives very close to a spot where a number of homeless residents are staying. Joanne Raye says she's seeing many more people without homes, and something must be done to help.

Imagine you drag a box of Christmas decorations out of the attic, open the box, and find a bat! It happened to one New Brunswick family. We'll speak with Pam Novak at the Atlantic Wildlife Institute.

The Higgs government has two rationales for moving to force 5 public sector pension plans into a shared risk model. The first is financial viability; the second is fairness to other employee groups. But 2 of the 5 plans are in sound financial shape, and there is another pension plan that won't be touched. The CBC's Robert Jones will join us with that story.

Chef and educator Janet Hamilton joins us for a dose of food safety, and the do's and don'ts to keep in mind during the holidays.

Homelessness in St. Stephen has hit an all-time crisis level, leading the town to declare a local state of emergency. We'll hear the reaction in the Legislature, and the response to it from St. Stephen mayor Allan MacEachern.

The province has reached an agreement with the federal government on addressing gender-based violence. $16.3 million dollars will be committed over 4 years to the effort. How far will that go? We'll speak with Cathy Holtmann, director of the Muriel McQueen Fergusson Centre for Family Violence Research.