Animal Reports: A Bobcat Sighting, Beavers, Cats Hunting Ducks

A Bobcat Sighting

A Meadows End Road woman was sitting in her kitchen Wednesday morning when she looked out the window and saw a bobcat staring back at her from behind the gas grill in her yard.

Animal Control said the bobcat then limped off into the woods. It is believed to be an adult female with a den in the area, according to Animal Control Officer Ed Risko. It poses no threat, he added.

Risko said the wild cat could have been eying the pet bird in a cage by the woman's window or her small five-pound dog — or it could have just been passing through.

Risko doubts the bobcat was interested in the house pets. He said bobcats, foxes and coyotes thrive in the area, because the animals live on small rodents such as squirrels and chipmunks, which have healthy populations here.

A Sick Raccoon

A sick raccoon was seen in the yard of a Twin Brook Terrace resident on Monday, according to a complaint reported at 12:53 p.m.

Animal Control said nobody was exposed to the raccoon, which could not be found.

A Skunk Under Her Steps

An Alpine Road resident reported a skunk denning under her front steps Tuesday.

Animal Control determined the skunk was not sick or injured and advice was given to use an exclusion device to trap and remove the skunk, "hopefully before any babies are born."

The case was referred to a Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection (DEEP) licensed Nuisance Wildlife Control Operator.

Cats Hunting Ducks

A man had taken in feral cats before his house on Cottage Street was abandoned, so there is now a colony there, according to police.

A woman living on the street has been feeding ducks, which are now being hunted by the cats she told Animal Control in a complaint filed Tuesday. She was referred to volunteers with a trapping, neutering and release program.

Nah, Nah, Nah, Nah, Nah!

The battery on a dog's invisible electric fence collar fell out and the pooch ran up and down its street on Purdy Hill Road Wednesday, teasing another dog it shared the fenced in area with, according to Animal Control.

The dog was impounded and later picked up by a neighbor who is watching the dogs while the owners are away, police said. He was issued a verbal warning for a roaming dog.

Beaver Damage

Beavers causing tree damage and flooding were reported by a May Court resident at 9:26 a.m. on Feb. 18.

Animal Control reviewed exclusion methods with the owner to protect the trees and made a referral to a Nuisance Wildlife Control Operator.

Deer Struck by Vehicles

A deer was hit by a motor vehicle on Monroe Turnpike at around 8:09 a.m. on Feb. 17, but Animal Control could not find the injured deer.

Another deer was injured in a car accident on Barn Hill Road Feb. 19. That animal also could not be found, according to the report.

Sick or Injured Skunk

A sick or injured skunk was seen in the driveway of an Elm Street residence at around 7:24 a.m. on Feb. 17.

Nobody was exposed to the skunk and the area was searched, but Animal Control said the rodent could not be found.

Come Right In!

A stray pit bull terrier walked into a Blueberry Lane woman's house as she was letting her own dog out on Tuesday evening, police said.

Animal Control Officer Ed Risko said it was a "good natured little dog," who was impounded without incident. A neighbor later reported her dog missing and picked it up for the $15 impound fee.

She was issued a written warning for failure to license.

The owner of the house on Blueberry Lane, who had made the complaint, was also issued a written warning for failure to license her own dog.

Coyote Likes the Ambiance

A Pastors Walk woman called Monroe Animal Control at 9:15 a.m. on Feb. 14 to report seeing a coyote gnawing on a deer leg in her yard.

Monroe Animal Control Officer Ed Risko said the coyote has been bringing food into the woman's yard to eat because it feels safe there. It is normal activity, according to Risko, but the property owner was told to use caution outside.

A Sick Stray Cat

A stray cat that was sick, unvaccinated and suffering from a wound of an unknown origin was found at Senior Drive on Monday afternoon.

The person who found the cat did not want it to be put down, so Animal Control referred her to a cat rescue volunteer, who brought the animal somewhere for veterinary care.

The Dog Log

A Harvester Road resident was issued a written warning for failure to license a Shitzu with long white hair that was reported lost on Tuesday and found later in the day.

A Guinea Road resident was issued a written warning for failure to license Tuesday after the owner's dog was reported lost and then found on Tuesday.

A Fairfield woman reported her dog missing at 8:01 Monday morning after it had escaped from the house of a friend she was visiting in Trumbull, according to the report.

Trumbull Animal Control found her pet near the Monroe town line at 8:26 and the owner and her dog were soon reunited.

A stray German Shepherd with a collar and tags was seen roaming on Hammertown Road at 11:03 a.m. on Monday.

Animal Control said the dog was validly vaccinated and licensed and was reunited with its owner, who was given a written warning for a roaming dog.

An Guinea Road owner was reunited with a lost "small blonde dog" who had no tags Feb. 16, according to Animal Control. The owner was issued a written warning for failure to license.

A Pepper Street resident was given a verbal warning for a roaming dog and a written warning for failure to renew a dog license after picking it up from the pound on Feb. 16.

A lost male yellow labrador retriever with no collar was reported by a Great Hollow Road resident at 10:25 a.m. on Feb. 15.

Police said the dog was found on Doris Drive and brought to the pound at 12:19 p.m. The owner was contacted and redeemed the dog for a $15 fee.

The owner was given a verbal warning for a roaming dog and a written warning for failure to license.

A Pepper Street woman told Animal Control that a neighbor's dog attacked her and her dog at around 5:42 p.m. Feb. 14.

Police said there were no injuries or damages and that both dogs were validly vaccinated and licensed.

A written warning was issued to the offending dog owner (another Pepper Street resident), according to police, and she was charged with a roaming dog and creating a nuisance first offense.

A German Shepherd with collar and tags was seen on Hammertown Road at around 2:25 p.m. Feb. 14 and a roaming dog complaint was made.

The dog was impounded and its owner contacted. The German shepherd was redeemed for a $15 impound fee and its owner was issued a verbal warning for a roaming dog and a written warning for failure to license.

Animal Control said the dog was validly vaccinated and that a license was purchased prior to its release.

A roaming dog was reported at 2:18 p.m. on Feb. 14. by a Fan Hill Road resident who saw a black labrador retriever with a pink collar. Animal Control went door-to-door in the neighborhood and the dog and its owner, a Diane Drive resident, were located.

The owner was issued a written warning for failure to license and a verbal warning for a roaming dog.