Animal 411

Police: Coyote Charges Leashed Dog at Waveny

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Police are urging residents to keep their dogs leashed when walking at Waveny following a report that coyote charged one there. At about 7:40 p.m. on April 22, a resident told police that a coyote emerged from the woods and ran toward his leashed dog while they walked in the park. That could be a sign that it was an unhealthy animal, according to Officer Allyson Halm, head of the New Canaan Police Department’s Animal Control section. “If there’s a den in the area then certainly the adults will be more protective,” Halm said. “It’s also possible that the animal wasn’t a healthy animal.

Animal 411

Two Parade Hill Lane Dogs Injured in Apparent Tangle with Coyote

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A small dog suffered puncture wounds on its throat during what appears to be a run-in with a coyote off of Parade Hill Lane last week, officials said. At about 11 p.m. on April 7, a resident of the street let out a Bichon Frise and Labradoodle and soon heard a commotion and saw both dogs running back toward the house, injured, according to a police report. The larger dog had wounds to its legs, and both animals are now confined during a 45-day home observation period, said Officer Allyson Halm of the New Canaan Police Department’s Animal Control section. “If you are letting dogs out at dawn or dusk, go out first and make noises yourself—this will alert skunks and raccoons and other wildlife, and then let your dogs out,” Halm said. “It is those hours, the dark hours, that these animals are out and about.”

The home where the confrontation occurred on Parade Hill Lane backs up to the New Canaan Nature Center’s property.

Animal 411

Four Puncture Wounds On Benedict Hill Road Dog’s Throat Following Presumed Tangle with Coyote

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A Benedict Hill Road dog is under a 45-day observation after puncture wounds were found on his throat—presumably following a confrontation with a coyote out back of his home. Last Monday at about 1:30 p.m., police received a report that the 22-pound Dachshund mix had bolted, barking, into the woods out back of his home, according to a report on file with the New Canaan Police Department’s Animal Control section. The small dog’s owner then heard a yelp and went running out after the animal, the report said. The dog already was running back out of the woods, and later in the day, his owner came upon bloodstains on the animal’s bed, the report said. A veterinarian then found the four puncture wounds on the animal’s throat, prompting officials to put the dog under observation to be safe, since the origins of the bite marks are not absolutely certain, according to Officer Allyson Halm, head of Animal Control.

Animal 411

INTERACTIVE MAP: Coyote Sightings in New Canaan, 2016

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Above is an interactive map of coyote sightings in New Canaan in 2016 that we will keep updated throughout the year (to report a coyote sighting, phone Animal Control at 203-594-3510). Each orange pin marks a sighting of one coyote unless otherwise noted—click on them for more information. New Canaan is in the midst of coyote breeding season (January to March), and the New Canaan Police Department’s Animal Control section is fielding reports every week about new sightings in town. Officer Allyson Halm encourages New Canaanites to learn how to live together with the animals, such as by protecting pets and property (see the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection’s coyote fact sheet here). “We are the ones with the education and the brains,” Halm said.

Animal 411

Coyote Takes Dog on Michigan Road

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A coyote killed a dog in a Michigan Road yard on Saturday afternoon and scampered off with its body, according to police. At about 3 p.m. on Aug. 22, a husband and wife were inside their home near the intersection of Jennifer Lane when they heard their dog barking outside and then, after hearing a yip, went outside to find what was happening and saw a coyote running away, according to a report filed with the New Canaan Police Department’s Animal Control Unit. It isn’t clear what breed the dog was—the animal had been left in the yard, protected by an invisible fence, according to Officer Maryann Kleinschmitt, head of Animal Control. This time of year, the coyotes born from about March to May are starting to hunt on their own, and their prey can include cats and smaller dogs, Kleinschmitt said.