Animal 411

Raccoon Killed by New Canaan Dog Tests Negative for Rabies

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A raccoon killed by a New Canaan dog came back from a state lab testing negative for rabies, officials say. At about 4:30 p.m. on Dec. 15, police were notified that a German Short-Haired Pointer had killed the raccoon in a heavily wooded area off of Hicock Road, according to Animal Control Officer Maryann Kleinschmitt. “This is not the first time that this dog has gotten into it with raccoons” since the family that owns the pointer moved an invisible fence forward into the woods, she said.

Animal 411

Woman Heads to Emergency Room after Ponus Ridge Dog Bites Her Arm

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A boxer mix is under quarantine through Tuesday after biting a woman last week while she tried to change bed sheets in a Ponus Ridge home, officials say. It happened around 4 p.m. on Dec. 16, according to Animal Control Office Maryann Kleinschmitt, and the bite was bad enough to send the woman to the hospital. The animal was sleeping in the bed when she reached and grabbed its collar, frightening the dog, which bit her on the arms, Kleinschmitt said. “It’s not the worst bite, but not the best,” she said.

Animal 411

Dog Owner Fined after Lab-Greyhound Mix Repeatedly Relieves Itself on Neighbor’s Property

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A Turtle Back Road South homeowner faces a $92 fine after repeated instances of its dog scampering under a deer fence to relieve itself in a neighbor’s yard, police say. The problem has been going on for about six months, according to Officer Maryann Kleinschmitt of the New Canaan Police Department’s Animal Control unit. The 3-year-old dog, a rescued Labrador retriever and greyhound mix, had become frightened by the noise emitted by an invisible fence collar, so its owner settled on a physical fence for the property instead, Kleinschmitt said. “But deer fencing is flimsy and even though it prevents a deer from getting onto a property, a dog will be able to get underneath it,” Kleinschmitt said. After months of trying to deal with the problem, the affected neighbor finally complained to police at about 8:31 a.m. on Dec.

Around Town

Pet-Loving Girl Scouts Fund Purchase of Dryer for New Canaan Animal Shelter, Plan Future Projects

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For these many years, whenever a dry towel or blanket was needed for a dog or cat at the New Canaan Police Department shelter, Animal Control Officer Maryann Kleinschmitt had to wait for the item to hang-dry from its last use—a worrying prospect in the damp shelter, where animals must be dried regularly after walks. Sometimes it’s raining, as it has been this week, and even when it’s not, the grounds outside the shelter at the Lakeview Avenue Transfer Station often are dusted with the salt that the Highway Department uses, and if it isn’t washed off, the animals can get sores on their paws. Thanks to a group of dog- and cat-loving Saxe Middle School girls, warm and dry towels are now just minutes away for Kleinschmitt. “I am so excited about having this dryer,” Kleinschmitt said Tuesday, leaning against the shelter’s newly installed appliance and surrounded by members of Girl Scouts Troop 198 as a Nor’easter raged outside. Following a field visit with Kleinschmitt at the shelter in the spring, the seven girls in the Troop decided to use their cookie money to fund the purchase of the dryer.

Animal 411

Back Up for Adoption at New Canaan Animal Control: Randy the Chihuahua

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Randy the Chihuahua-Adoptable Now at NCPD Animal Shelter
A brindle Chihuahua that came into custody of the New Canaan Police Department Animal Control unit this summer when it was found roaming on Carter Street is back up for adoption, officials say. Randy, a small-size Chihuahua mix who is about three years old, needs a child-free home, Officer Maryann Kleinschmitt said. The dog had been adopted out with instructions to give it a couple of weeks before children come over, and then to have the dog in a crate or leashed when children are there, but those instructions weren’t followed and Randy ended up nipping at kids, which is “characteristic of Chihuahuas,” she said. “That’s what a trainer is working on with Randy now, is for him to calm down and so far it’s working quite well,” Kleinschmitt said. “Even with kids going into the shelter, he doesn’t bark or growl at them or anything, so this is a good thing and we’re still working on finding a new home for him, someone who understands Chihuahuas.”

Randy was found by police, roaming on Carter Street on the morning of July 23.