A Nursery Road homeowner whose Labrador retriever is known in the neighborhood as a serial off-property roamer appears now to have a second dog in the family, a 14-week-old Lab puppy who recently was found bounding down the roadway, too, officials say.
The New Canaan Police Department’s Animal Control unit at 11:11 a.m. Friday was dispatched to Nursery Road on a report of two roaming dogs, according to a police report.
Asked about the incident, Animal Control Officer Allyson Halm said she came upon the dogs in the street and coaxed them into the department’s van, then returned the animals to their owner. The owner was fined $184 for allowing the two dogs to roam ($92 each), an infraction offense, Halm said.
The older dog, 11-year-old Moose, a chocolate Lab, has been roaming off-property on a regular basis since the family moved into New Canaan, officials have said. The dog had been breaching an invisible fence on the family’s 3.5-acre property that for some reason wasn’t functioning, and that was replaced by a physical fence whose gate appears to have been left open at times, allowing the animal to get out, according to police.
In this latest instance, a gardener or landscaping crew was blamed for allowing the dog out, officials said.
The owners could face a misdemeanor “annoyance in the highway” charge if the retrievers continue to escape into the road, Halm said. The home is located near both White Oak Shade Road and the Merritt Parkway.