Allyson Halm

‘Very Hard To Watch’: Deer Dragging ‘Leghold Trap’ Seen in New Canaan

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Officials say they’re concerned for the welfare of a deer that appears to be dragging a “leghold trap” from one of its hind legs. The young buck dragging the trap was spotted Tuesday on Pequot Lane, according to Officer Allyson Halm, head of the New Canaan Police Department’s Animal Control section. “He wasn’t moving too quickly,” Halm told NewCanaanite.com. “It was a pretty large trap and you could see the leg was swollen compared to the other one.”

The traps use a footplate and curved jaws that snap onto animals that spring them. Halm said the traps are not supposed to be placed where deer can get into them.

Animal 411

Roaming Peacock Returned to Ponus Ridge Home [UPDATED]

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Update 12 p.m. Wednesday

The owner of this peacock saw the story and the bird is now back in a pen at its Ponus Ridge home, according to Officer Allyson Halm of the New Canaan Police Department’s Animal Control section. The resident has four peacocks in all, she said. Original story

Police are urging the owner of a peacock spotted Monday afternoon wandering around a residential neighborhood in New Canaan to contact Animal Control officials about the exotic bird. The peacock was seen on Wahackme Road between Ponus Ridge and Myanos Road, according to Police Chief Leon Krolikowski. The animal eluded capture, he said.

Animal 411

‘I Am So Happy’: Missing Since Saturday, New Canaan Dog ‘Oreo’ Is Found Alive and Well [UPDATED]

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Update 10 p.m. Tuesday

Oreo Valiquette, the 15-month-old dog that went missing Saturday afternoon from a Four Winds Lane home, was found at about 9:30, according to his owner. A neighbor who had received one of the ‘Missing Dog’ flyers from  Gabrielle Valiquette phoned at around 9:30 p.m. Tuesday saying “we hear a little dog, we don’t see anything but we can hear something,” she said. “My husband went over with a flashlight and he was there, on the property, clean and unharmed and warm,” Valiquette told NewCanaanite.com. Oreo, a 10-pound Havenese and Poodle combination, has been missing since he chased after a deer in the Valiquette’s backyard on Saturday. He ultimately was found about five houses away, though it isn’t clear where Oreo has been all this time.

Animal 411

Animal Calls: Four Dog Bites in New Canaan

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The New Canaan Police Department’s Animal Control section fielded reports of four dog bites in recent weeks. The following summaries are based on NCPD incident reports obtained by NewCanaanite.com through Freedom of Information requests. ***

A woman at about 11:47 a.m. on Sept. 22 contacted Officer Allyson Halm, head of Animal Control, saying that she’d been bitten the prior week by a Wheaten terrier she was caring for on West Road while the dog’s owners were away. The woman reported the bite after being told to do so by an attorney, according to a police report.

Animal 411

New Canaan Dog Rescue Group: Animal Cruelty Investigation Is Focused on Organization’s President 

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The head of a New Canaan-based dog rescue group is at the center of an animal cruelty investigation involving several dogs that appeared to have died in crates inside a Fairfield home, according to the nonprofit organization’s vice president. Believed to have been sent to either a sanctuary or foster home, the remains of the five dogs were found in the care of Heidi Lueders, president of Bully Breed Rescue Inc., according to a post on the organization’s website attributed to Vice President Chris Antolini. Alerted to local news reports of an investigation at the familiar street address, 37 Prince St. in Fairfield, members and volunteers with Bully Breed “all immediately began cooperating with local police and detectives,” Antolini said. “It is with great sadness that we confirm all five dogs on Prince Street were dogs of Bully Breed Rescue, Inc. under the care of President Heidi Lueders,” Antolini said in the statement.