On Monday, Hannaford supermarkets stopped its long-standing policy of crediting shoppers with 5 cents for reusable grocery bags.

Spokesman Mike Norton said the credit didn’t seem to be motivating new customers to bring in their own bags; more people reported simply recycling for recycling’s sake.

Between 12 and 15 percent of groceries leave the store in reusable bags, Norton said. Chain-wide, that’s replacing (and saving the use of) 952,000 pounds of plastic bags.

Hannaford is looking at other ways to boost that figure. “What’s the next innovation we can do to try to get that percentage up even higher?” Norton said.

One idea is a 20,000-bag giveaway, a “small gesture,” he said. No longer giving out the nickels will save the grocer some money in the short term – “If you add it up, it’s a six-figure number” – but long-term, that will likely be spent on a similar customer initiative, Norton said.

By midweek, the Hannaford’s Customer Information Center had taken 20 calls from people asking about the change.

– Kathryn Skelton
In the doghouse

Police are called to referee all sorts of arguments, especially when alcohol is involved.

Trooper Ricci Cote, who patrols Gray for the Maine State Police, said he investigated a reported domestic disturbance one night last week.

He found a couple at their Yarmouth Road home debating the finer points of grooming their golden retriever.

“It was evident by their arguing in front of Trooper Cote that they needed to be separated,” a supervisor wrote in a weekly incident report.

Cote reported that the man offered to leave, which he did after grabbing a pillow and blanket and hoofing it to his nearby office to sleep on the couch. No charges were filed.

– Christopher Williams
Missing dolls, dragons

It was a rough week on Lincoln Street. In addition to the two people, four cats and a snake left homeless by a fire Tuesday, the following also went missing: 15 Hindu dolls, three dragons, two pewter wizards and four elephants.

The latter items were taken from the 253 Lincoln St. home of Christopher Dufour, who lived on the first floor of the building that burned. A day or two after his apartment was rendered uninhabitable by water used to fight the fire, thieves snuck into Dufour’s apartment and stole his eclectic collectibles.

“It can really make one lose faith in mankind,” Dufour said. “It’s like beating someone when he’s lying on the ground.”

Police are investigating the menagerie theft. Anyone with information about the dolls, dragons, wizards and elephants is asked to call their local department.

– T.S. Chamberland and Mark LaFlamme