(November 2017) Colorado: Three curious Bull Mastiffs rescued by firefighters after getting stuck in storm drain

COLORADO -- Three very large dogs who went exploring and got stuck in a storm drain were rescued without injury thanks to careful work by firefighters and animal control.

On Monday, animal control got a call about three mastiffs who had escaped from their yard and ran into a nearby culvert near Arlington Place and Zinnia Court.

West Metro Fire Rescue and Jefferson County Animal Control Officer C. Hubrecht arrived at the scene and worked to rescue Oso, Max and Daisy.

“There were people looking down at the storm drain and I said that doesn't happen to be a dog down there does it? And sure enough all three mastiffs were down there," said Lynn Drum, who looked in her backyard and realized her dogs were gone.

She says this isn't the first time this has happened. Daisy went in the culvert before, and her husband rescued her.

Maybe this time, she just wanted a few friends to join.

"They were adorable," said one of the kids, Meadow Wilson. "But at the same time, it's a little scary because they could have gotten lost in there, and who knows what could have happened to them."

Officer Hubrecht talked with Drum about the value of licensing pets, and the owner agreed to do so on the spot, the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office said in a Facebook post.

“We’re happy this story had a happy ending for everyone. And whether you have four legs or two, we’ll be here if you need us," the post continued.

Great work, everyone!

*  *  *  *  *  *

Jefferson County Sheriff's Office added 8 new photos.
November 30 at 12:15pm ·

How in the World?

Even if you don’t have a dog or are even a dog person, most of you are probably aware that a mastiff is a pretty big pup. That’s why this story is so incredible.

JCSO Animal Control Officer C. Hubrecht received a call Monday about not one, not two, but THREE mastiffs stuck in a storm drain at W. Arlington Place and S. Zinnia Court.

Sure enough, there they were. But how? Well, dogs are funny and curious creatures who love exploring, especially when they’ve escaped their yard. At least this furry group brought their friends along when they ran into a culvert nearby.

Thankfully our friends at West Metro Fire Rescue were able to rescue them safely.

 

  

 

Animal Control Officer Hubrecht spoke with the owner about the dangers of dogs running at large and the owner purchased dog licenses on the spot.

We’re happy this story had a happy ending for everyone. And whether you have four legs or two, we’ll be here if you need us, JeffCo.

West Metro Fire Rescue added 6 new photos.
November 30 at 1:52pm ·

How do you get three bull mastiffs out of a storm drain? Carefully. Our Engine 11 crew this week, working with an animal control officer with the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office.

The dogs escaped their yard and curiosity led them into the drain to explore near W. Arlington Place and S. Zinnia Court.

Thankfully, the story had a happy ending.

9NEWS VIDEO NEWS CLIP:

(9News - Nov 30, 2017)

Illinois: Ten-hour standoff between cops, 3-foot lizard ends peacefully

ILLINOIS -- A 3-foot pet lizard held authorities at bay for more than 10 hours Wednesday after it holed up in a storm drain in Yorkville.

By the time the 6-year-old female lizard was finally secure, it was about 9 p.m., said Yorkville police Deputy Chief Terry Klingel.

Yorkville police responded to a "found animal" report at 10:36 a.m. Wednesday near Cannonball Trail and Fairhaven Drive.

The monitor lizard, which has not been named, had been in a drainage ditch "basking in the sun," police said in a statement.

When an officer saw the lizard, it immediately retreated into a storm drain, police said.

Considering the "possible territorial and aggressive nature" of the animal, and how close it was to residential homes, authorities decided they should to try to get it out of the drain safely, according to a news release from the Police Department.

Monitor lizards typically live on islands in the southwest Pacific, Australia, Africa south of the Sahara, and south and southeast Asia, according to Encyclopedia Britannica. Monitors include 50 species that can range from 8 inches to 10 feet long, and most are carnivorous, according to the encyclopedia.

Klingel said he had no clue about the monitor's species.

Officials with the Department of Natural Resources, Kendall County Animal Control and the Bristol Kendall Fire Department became involved, making what police described as "numerous attempts to extract the lizard" as the day wore on.

"Multiple times, the lizard came within inches of the openings only to re-enter the storm drain and avoid capture," police stated.

Following a series of failed attempts, the team tried a new strategy, blocking off one side of the drain pipe and setting a live trap on the other side, police stated.

Meanwhile, as many as 30 people had gathered to watch the activity, Klingel said.

"Once all the excitement calmed down and most individuals were gone, the lizard emerged," police said in the statement.

The live trap caught the lizard without hurting it, police said.

A qualified zoologist cared for the lizard until its owner showed up, reportedly unaware of how it got away, according to the statement.

Authorities determined the lizard was legally owned and appropriately housed in Illinois. Police said no charges had been filed against the owner, and the investigation is ongoing.

Laura Pawson, director of Kendall County Animal Control, said during her time on scene, she barely caught a glimpse of the lizard when its head peeked out from the drain.

Animal Control doesn't deal with lizards much, and handling this one involved a lot of brainstorming among the agencies who responded, Pawson said. They considered some kind of trap early on, but worked out other ideas while waiting on equipment, she said.

"It was more about trying to be patient, trying to wait for (it) to pop (its) little head up and see if we could possibly maybe get (it) with a catch pole," Pawson said.

Though the situation was unusual, it wasn't stressful and turned out to be a good learning experience, Pawson said. She said there is certainly one thing she learned from the situation.

"I guess there is no quick way to get something out of a drain if it doesn't want to come out," Pawson said.

(Chicago Tribune - August 31, 2017)

New York: Police officer climbs down into storm drain to rescue kitten

NEW YORK -- NYPD Special Ops @NYPDSpecialops August 23, 2017

#ESU Det Hirsch is feline good this morning after climbing down a storm drain & rescuing a trapped kitten @NYPD115Pct

Maryland: City workers and animal control officer come together to rescue baby bunny from storm drain

MARYLAND -- Frederick County Animal Control officers are used to rescuing wildlife from storm drains, but the call they received Friday afternoon was somewhat unusual, said Sgt. Dave Luckenbaugh.

“Typically, when we get these calls ... it’s baby ducks; the mom will walk right over the grate and the little ducklings will slip through and get trapped,” Luckenbaugh said. “And we usually tend to get most of those during the spring. By now, they’re usually too big to fall through.”

Frederick County Division of Animal Control Officer Robert 

Uttermohlen (kneeling) rescues a baby rabbit from a storm 

drain with the help of city public works employees. 

Photo courtesy of Richard Griffin

That said, Officer Robert Uttermohlen may have been a bit surprised when emergency dispatchers sent him to rescue a baby rabbit from a drain near the Panera Bread on Kingfisher Drive at about 1:30 p.m. Friday.

With a bit of help from city Department of Public Works employees, Uttermohlen was able to scoop the frightened animal up and out of danger and reunite it with two other juvenile rabbits that were found nearby, Luckenbaugh said.

All three rabbits were quickly taken to a more remote area and released, but not before several passers-by noticed the commotion, including Richard Griffin, the city’s director of economic development, who had stopped by the shopping center to eat lunch.

“He was the tiniest little wet thing you’ve ever seen in your life,” Griffin said with a laugh. “It was lovely. There were some people standing around watching, so when the rabbit came out and started hopping around, a little cheer went up.”

(fredericknewspost.com - Aug 18, 2017)

Ohio: Strongsville police officer climbs down into sewer to rescue ducklings

OHIO -- A Strongsville police officer rescued four ducklings on Saturday morning. Police said the ducklings fell into a sewer drain.

Officer Larotonda went down in the sewer and reunited the ducklings with their mother. Police said the mother was happy to have her babies back.

The Facebook post by the Strongsville Police Department got more than 290 likes within the first two hours of it being put online. Many followers of the page thanked the officer for rescuing the ducklings (as well as the typical snotty comments about police).

(WOIO - July 8, 2017)

Utah: Animal Control and a city Drain Inspector rescue baby quail trapped in storm drain

UTAH -- Like Lassie of old who rescued Timmy, two Pleasant Grove city employees saved four baby quail from a well Monday.

In a slight departure from their regular work schedules, Sandy Sargent, Pleasant Grove's animal control officer, and Jake Pettersson, a city storm drain inspector, answered the cries of the baby quail, who had fallen down a storm drain outside the Pleasant Grove City Library on East Center Street. They were alerted to the quail’s plight by a group who were meeting at the library.

“We all heard tiny squeaking sounds and … there were two quail right outside our meeting door in a state of anxiety. We saw the parents running around frantically and squawking. We also heard tiny little tweeting sounds coming from down in the grate,” said Sue Winmill, one of the women at the library meeting.

“When I got the call, I was told they’d fallen down a window well," Sargent said. "When I got there, the ladies showed me the storm drain where the babies were. I thought, this is a whole different ball game. That storm drain is 10 to 15 feet deep. I really wasn’t sure if we’d be able to get down there.

“The ladies asked me if it was worth trying to get them out. Their parents were running back and forth calling to them, and the babies were cheeping back. My heart was breaking for them, so I had to.”

She couldn’t get the heavy storm grate off, so she called into the street department. Pettersson came out, and it took some public works machinery, a long ladder and a bucket to rescue the babies.

“Those babies, I don’t think I have ever held something so tiny in my hands. They were maybe the size of a 50-cent piece. They were so much tinier than, when I was looking down the drain I first thought they were,” Sargent said.

After Pettersson retrieved the quail from the drain, Sargent checked the babies, and surprisingly, none of them were injured in the fall. She couldn’t get near their parents, so she placed them in some bushes nearby. As soon as she and bystanders backed away, the parents came running.

“It was a happy reunion,” Sargent said.

The regular day-to-day duties of city employees usually involve less happy tasks, and Sargent’s usual animal dealings have less joyful outcomes.

“For me, when things like that happen, it makes it all worth it,” she said.

(Daily Herald - Aug 11, 2016)

New York: Wildlife officer rescues bobcat kitten in Owego

NEW YORK -- It's not unusual to see a kitten saved by an officer, but it is if that baby is a wild bobcat.

That's exactly what happened in late June when the state Department of Environmental Conservation got a call about a bobcat kitten stuck in a drainage ditch in the Village of Owego.

DEC conservation officers Brent Wilson and Stanley Winnick were contacted by Tioga County 911 dispatch on June 23 regarding a bobcat kitten stuck in a drainage ditch in front of a residence.

When the officers arrived on the scene, an Owego police officer was already on hand, along with a group of children.

The person who located the bobcat and reported it runs a day care center out of her home, and she, along with the children, were concerned about the well-being of the animal, which had apparently sought shelter in a drain pipe for protection and gotten lodged.

Wilson and Winnick moved everyone away from the pipe and patiently waited for the bobcat to emerge. Eventually, it slowly crawled out, and Wilson caught the kitten after a quick chase.

Wilson placed the kitten in a safe storage compartment in his truck. A local wildlife rehabilitator happened to be nearby, setting a live trap for another bobcat kitten that had been abandoned.

Both kittens are doing well and will be released to the wild when they become self-sufficient, the DEC reported.

Follow Jeff Murray on Twitter @SGJeffMurray. 

Report a wildlife incident

To report nuisance wildlife or animals that are injured or distressed, contact your local DEC wildlife office.

In Region 7, which includes Tioga, Tompkins and Broome counties, call 607-753-3095, ext. 247. In Region 8, which includes Chemung, Schuyler and Steuben counties, call 585-226-5380 or 607-776-2165.

(Star Gazette - July 13, 2016)

California officers live-tweet rescue of baby ducks trapped in highway drain

CALIFORNIA -- Officers in Southern California made sure to give the public updates on an unfolding duck rescue, live-tweeting the situation of ducklings trapped under a grate on the highway.

California Highway Patrol's Southern Division spent part of Monday afternoon sharing news about the ducks’ dilemma on its Twitter page, ending with them “safe and sound.”

The nine baby birds had somehow found their way inside a drain on the Ventura Freeway in Glendale, north of Los Angeles, and authorities began sharing their duck tales shortly after 6 p.m.

It was not clear whether attention to recapturing the ducklings stemmed from the recent Pokemon Go craze or a general love for adorable animals, though Twitter users were drawn to videos and photos of the birds’ plight.

 

The responding officers soon had their ducks in a row, rescuing the captive chicks as they posted about their small-scale heroics 12 times.

An adult duck was seen perched along the highway’s retaining wall, and CHP said that the next objective was reuniting the ducklings with their mother.

(New York Daily News - July 11, 2016)

Indiana: Columbus police rescue ducklings from storm drain

INDIANA -- Columbus police and animal care services rescued nine baby ducks from a storm drain Wednesday afternoon.

Two people heard the baby ducks’ crying around 1 p.m. in the drain near 7th Street and Pleasant Grove.

Officer Chris Strickland was able to remove two of the ducklings by hand and return them to the mother, but seven of the ducks were stuck in a different section of the drain about ten feet below the street.

 

Chris McDaniel with Columbus Animal Care Services arrived a short time later and used a net to remove the remaining ducks from the drain.

Officials weren’t able to reunite the remaining rescued ducks with their family.

McDaniel says the ducks are around two weeks old and appear to be in good health. They will be taken to UTOPIA Wildlife Rehabilitators in Hope, Indiana who specialize in the rehabilitation and release of animals.

(Fox 59 - June 15, 2016)

Indiana: Workers spend four hours to rescue little gray kitten stuck in storm drain

INDIANA -- This was posted on reporter Jessica Gavin's Facebook page for station 14 News WFIE in Evansville, Indiana:

"A 6 week old kitten is stuck in a pipe beneath this drain on Green River Road in front of Starbucks. Police and animal control tried a trap and food, no luck. Sewer Dept en route.

"HAPPY UPDATE: kitten rescued!! Patience pays off - city workers, police and animal control worked hard for 4 hours! :)"

Good job guys!

 

(14News - June 15, 2016)

New York: Ducklings rescued on Commercial Drive

NEW YORK -- The first indication that something was wrong was the duck in the road.

Gina and Scott Donlyak, of Chadwicks, were driving down Commercial Drive around 11 a.m. Friday when they saw it.

Photo: Utica Observer-Dispatch

Scott Donlyak got out of the car to usher the duck out of traffic and thought it was strange when it began hissing at him aggressively. That's when he heard something that made everything a bit clearer: "Peep! Peep!"

The Donlyaks looked into a nearby storm grate and saw four ducklings inside — "really little, tiny things," Gina Donlyak said.

The couple called 911 to report the trapped ducklings, and New Hartford police and animal control responded. Officers were able to rescue two of the ducklings within an hour.

Photo: Utica Observer-Dispatch

Unfortunately, by then the mother duck had been scared away by the commotion, and the remaining two ducklings had moved further into the drain system and could not be reached.

"We were able to catch two of them, but the others scurried back into the pipes," New Hartford Animal Control Officer Jeff Madden said.

At that point, officials at the scene contacted Woodhaven Wildlife Center Director Judy Cusworth, who recommended that the rescued birds should be placed by the grate to help reassure their siblings and perhaps draw them out.

Photo: Utica Observer-Dispatch

When that didn't work, state Department of Transportation employees were called in to consult, but ultimately determined there was nothing more that could be done.

Cusworth, who will be caring for the two rescued ducklings until they're old enough to fly, said she's encountered similar situations before.

"I'm used to going after them in these storm drains," she said. "Maybe it was a month ago in the Applebee's parking lot, 14 baby ducklings fell into the storm drain and the mother didn't leave."

Photo: Utica Observer-Dispatch

The trapped ducklings might still rescue themselves by following the pipes back to a stream somewhere, she added.

"You never know where those storm drains are going to go," she said.

(Observer-Dispatch - June 17, 2016)

Texas: Deputies rescue mewling kitten from sewer

TEXAS -- Harris County Constable Precinct 4 deputies managed to free a yellow kitten from a sewage pipe recently and captured the rescue on camera.

Watch the sweet rescue in the video player above.

The deputy who rescued the kitten can be seen in the video with only his feet exposed outside the sewer drain, as the kitten meows for help.

 

The mewling kitten was eventually pulled from the drain.

(KTRK-TV - June 16, 2016)

Illinois: Chicago Police Officers Rescue Ducklings From Sewer

ILLINOIS -- Chicago Police officers made an unusual rescue Saturday morning on the Northwest Side.

Shortly after 10 a.m., Chicago Police officers at O’Hare received a call to assist a citizen on an airport service road, according to a statement from police News Affairs.

  

When the officers arrived, they found two women trying to rescue a family of ducklings that became trapped in a sewer near the United Airlines Credit Union, police said.

Officers Floyd Eppling, Timothy Bolger, Carlos Soria, Martin McNaughton and John Conway removed the sewer cover and lowered themselves to rescue the seven baby ducklings.

After rescuing the baby ducklings, they reunited them with the mama duck, who had been nervously watching the rescue nearby.

Reunited family

(CBS Chicago - May 29, 2016)

Minnesota: Ducklings Rescued From Storm Drain by Firefighters

MINNESOTA -- The Albert Lea Fire Department made a unique rescue on Friday morning.

A group of baby ducks had fallen into a sewage drain in downtown Albert Lea.

According to Fire Captain Scott Hanna, this is not the first time it's happened.

“Kind of one of our signs that spring is actually here. We do duck rescues every year,” said Hanna.

An onlooker, Susie Petersen, witnessed the fallen ducks and immediately called the fire department

"They went down, and the mama went right by that sewer and they went plop, plop, plop,” said Petersen.

The fire department was able to open the drain, get the ducklings out and put them into a bucket. Then, they walked to the nearby lake, with the mother duck trailing right behind them.

“We try and get all of them into a bucket because then, usually, the mother duck will follow you,” said Hanna.

Hanna also notes that Albert Lea has always been helpful when it comes to animal rescues.

“There’s always someone that calls us, we’re not on ducks in the storm sewer patrol,” said Hanna. “It’s amazing the concern for animals that our community shows.”

(WDAZ - May 14, 2016)

Texas: Police rescue deer from storm drain

TEXAS -- The Austin fire and police departments have rescued a deer stuck in a storm drain on a N. MoPac service road Tuesday.

A KXAN Viewer tried to help the deer Tuesday afternoon beneath the U.S. 183 flyover, but was unable to rescue the deer from the drain. Only its head was visible.

 

 

 

 

At around 2:30 p.m., firefighters and police successfully rescued the deer from the drain and released the deer safely.

(News2 - may 4, 2016)