Animal 411

New Canaan Woman Charged with Animal Cruelty

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Fairfield police on Tuesday arrested a 31-year-old New Canaan woman by warrant and charged her with five counts of animal cruelty, two months after finding the remains of dogs in crates inside the Fairfield home where she had been residing. Heidi Lueders, now of Marshall Ridge Road, additionally was charged with first-degree criminal damage to a landlord’s property by a tenant, according to a press release issued by Fairfield Police Capt. Robert Kalamaras. 

Police launched an investigation on the afternoon of Nov. 14 after responding to a report of animal cruelty at 37 Prince St. in Fairfield. There, officers found “several animal carcasses, which are believed to be canine remains, in crates within the residence,” Kalmaras said in the release. 

“Fairfield Animal Control Officers and Detectives responded to the house to further investigate.

Animal 411

‘A Tame But Desperate Kitty’: Lost or Dumped Cat Appears Christmas Eve at Transfer Station

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A cat that may have been dumped around Christmas at the Transfer Station on Lakeview Avenue is now in custody of the New Canaan Police Department’s Animal Control section, officials said. Officer Allyson Halm, head of Animal Control, said she first noticed the orange-and-white cat on Christmas Eve, “cuddled against the wall” next to NCPD’s animal shelter, which is located at the Transfer Station. “It was there all day, it would talk to me and wink, but scatter when I approached,” Halm said. “Of course I fed him, or her, and it ate like it was starving.”

Over the holiday week, Halm found the cat waiting for her each day and the animal would again “eat like it hadn’t seen a meal.”

“I was able to get closer each day, it was obvious this was a tame but desperate kitty,” she said. 

Finally, on Monday, Halm managed to catch the cat and the animal is now inside the shelter staying warm. It isn’t clear just how the cat got to the shelter, whether the animal was dumped or lost, or how old or what sex the animal is. 

If no one claims the cat, it could become adoptable as soon as Jan.

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.