Community Corner

UPDATE: Dog Found Dead in Garbage Bag in Stratford

The man who says he made the discovery describes what he saw.

Updated 1:45 p.m. Friday

Stratford police believe the dog found dead in a garbage bag Tuesday morning was accidentally struck by a car.

Capt. John Popik tells Stratford Patch that the female husky suffered a bloody nose but no other external injuries, which is indicative of internal injuries "consistent with a car strike."

"At this point, it doesn't appear to be a criminal act," said Popik, adding that there were no signs of intentional mistreatment on the animal.

He said, "Right now there's not an active criminal investigation" but one could form as police gather more information, such as why exactly the dog was placed in a garbage bag.

What's also unclear is where the dog was reportedly struck – on the access road (off West Broad Street) where it was found or on the nearby southbound lane of I-95.

In the meantime, the department is working to find an owner.

"Anytime an animal is picked up deceased we keep it seven days in an attempt to find the other," Popik said.

The police captain, who speaks for Stratford Animal Control on matters such as this, further described the female husky as an adult dog at least a year old but not elderly, with a mixed coat.

The man who said he discovered the body described the dog as “younger” and “small- to medium-sized” with colors of black, brown and gray.

Anyone with information regarding the incident, should call Stratford Animal Control at 203.385.4068, Popik said.

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Our original report follows.

The body of a husky dog was found in a garbage bag in Stratford Tuesday morning.

“The dog’s head and its two front paws were hanging out of the bag,” said Shawn Chiarantano, who tells Stratford Patch he made the discovery about 10 a.m. Tuesday on an access road behind the Dunkin' Donuts at 1275 West Broad St.

Chiarantano said he was returning some bottles at a redemption center located at the end of the road with his brother when he saw the body, which he said lay about two feet from the curb in plain sight.

Chiarantano said he initially thought the dog – which he described as “younger” and “small- to medium-sized” with colors of black, brown and gray – was asleep; there were no signs of abuse or blood on the animal.

But after a while the dog didn’t move and Chiarantano dialed Stratford Animal Control, he said.

The 30-year-old Stratford resident said the responding officer did not ask him for any information, which he thought strange as he gave very limited details over the phone.

Though the animal didn’t have any tags or a collar, “it didn’t look like a stray dog,” Chiarantano said. “It looked like somebody’s pet, so why wouldn’t they want to know anything about it?”

The access road runs parallel to I-95 on the southbound side. The on- and off-ramps of the highway both are close to the entrance to the access road.

Stratford Animal Control referred comment to Officer Rachel Solveira, who could not be reached Thursday. Check back later for updates.



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