Community Corner

Alexandria Animal Control Report: Deer Mortally Wounded

A glance at recent incidents involving Alexandria Animal Control.

Animal Control officers in Alexandria deal with a variety of calls every week. Here's a glance at some recent incidents in the city courtesy of Patrick Egan of the Animal Welfare League of Alexandria.

Deer mortally wounded — A deer had to be euthanized after it was hit by a car near Alexandria Inova Hospital.

On Dec. 11, an animal control officer was dispatched to the 900 block of N. Howard Street after receiving a call that a driver struck a deer and then left the scene.

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The officer found the deer badly injured but the animal managed to get itself into the backyard of a nearby house.

The deer’s tracks indicated that it was dragging at least one leg. Once it was in the backyard, the animal made several unsuccessful attempts to stand.

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The officer was able to tranquilize the injured deer so it could be safely transported to the Vola Lawson Animal Shelter. Once there, the animal was humanely euthanized.

Get this raccoon an umbrella! — On Dec. 11, an animal control officer was dispatched to the 100 block of Hume Avenue after a resident called concerned about a raccoon discovered sleeping under an overhang in a building’s small courtyard area.

The officer was able to wake the animal with a few handclaps and then encouraged the animal to move along with an extension pole.

The ring-tailed bandit appeared healthy and was simply avoiding the weather.

Vola Lawson memorial service — Vola Lawson, Alexandria’s first female city manager, died Tuesday. She was 79. A lifelong animal lover, Lawson was a devoted board member of the Animal Welfare League of Alexandria who was known to bring dogs into City Hall during public hearings to promote adoption events.

In 1999, just before her retirement, the city named its animal shelter after her. A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Monday at Christ Church in Old Town. For more information, see: Memorial Service Scheduled for Vola Lawson

For more information about Alexandria Animal Control, visit the AWLA website.


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