Animal 411

Boyfriend Gets Raccoon out of New Canaan House with Sweatshirt, Then Puts It Back On

By |

The boyfriend of an Echo Hill Road resident re-donned his sweatshirt after using it to get a raccoon out of the house over Memorial Day weekend, so now he (the boyfriend) needs to talk to his doctor about a rabies vaccination, police say. It happened at 12:42 a.m. on Saturday, May 24, according to Animal Control Officer Maryann Kleinschmitt. The raccoon had wandered inside the house and was “trapped” there by a dog—a small, 3-year-old Labrador retriever mix—that ignored commands to leave the visitor alone, according to a police report. “The dog had the raccoon cornered, and an individual that was inside the house, a boyfriend, got it out by throwing his sweatshirt over the raccoon and taking it outside,” Kleinschmitt said. “Then he took the sweatshirt and put it back on, so if there’s saliva on it that we don’t know about, and the animal is sick, it could be a problem.

Animal 411

Park Street Cat under Home Quarantine after Biting Owner

By |

A Park Street cat is under a 2-week home quarantine after biting its owner after the most recent rabies vaccination had expired, police say. It happened at about 11:42 on May 17, according to New Canaan Police Animal Control Officer Maryann Kleinschmitt. “With cats, their behavior is that you pet them and then you stop, and they’ll use their paws or their teeth to get your attention,” she said. “This was a nip but it caused an abrasion and someone who is elderly can get an infection, so the doctor put this woman on an antibiotic and the cat is being kept in her basement until May 30.”

***

At about 3:13 p.m. on May 16, a sick raccoon was reported to be idling in the front yard of a West Hills Road home. There, police saw the raccoon, determined that it was sick and put it down.

Animal 411

Golden Retriever Rescues Smaller Dog from Coyote

By |

A golden retriever rescued a smaller dog on South Bald Hill Road as the latter was being carried off by a hungry coyote, New Canaan police said. Shortly after 9 p.m. on May 6 (a Tuesday), a coyote skulked into the yard where the golden retriever and its step-sibling—a smaller, Lhasa Apso-type dog—were idling within the boundaries of their invisible fence, according to the New Canaan Police Department’s Animal Control Unit. A coyote went for the smaller dog and had the animal in its jaws when the golden retriever counter-attacked, rescuing its sibling from certain death, Animal Control Officer Maryann Kleinschmitt said. “If the [golden retriever] hadn’t been there then the small dog would not be alive,” Kleinschmitt said. “There were puncture wounds on the small dog.”

The dogs’ owner was at home at the time and came upon the scene outside after he’d heard his smaller dog screeching, and then saw the golden chasing off the coyote, Kleinschmitt said.

Animal 411

Two People, Black Lab Trapped in Waveny Dog Park; Humans Fined

By |

New Canaan police ticketed two people who couldn’t get back out of the dog park at Waveny after someone had let them in. Since last summer, Spencer’s Run users have been required to punch in a key code in order to enter the popular dog run—a measure that requires registration and was designed to cut down on irresponsible pet owners. At about 3:58 p.m. on May 10 (a Saturday), police found a man and woman in Spencer’s Run who’d been let into the dog park with their black Labrador retriever by a key code-possessing user. A key code is required to get out of the park, too, so these two couldn’t escape, according to Animal Control Officer Maryann Kleinschmitt. ***

Animal Control at 1:34 p.m. on the same day responded to a report of an injured baby goose on a Fawn Lane property.

Animal 411

New Canaan Police: Dog Left in Car for 40 Minutes as Temps Eclipsed 80

By |

New Canaan police on Monday responded to a tip that a dog had been left inside a car in front of New Canaan Library as temperatures outside soared into the 80s. According to Animal Control Officer Maryann Kleinschmitt, a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel was left in a car for 40 minutes during the late morning. The windows were only opened a crack, she said. The dog did not exhibit signs of heat exhaustion—such as becoming non-responsive to rapping in the window—though temps inside the car passed 90 degrees, Kleinschmitt said. “I threw a thermometer into the car to show the owner when she came back that even though it was 81 outside, it was 92 inside,” Kleinscmitt said.