18 ATTACHMENT 14 - Laserfiche WebLink

Hawks Grounded In Bryant P~••'t After Chihuahua Attack -Print This c' ~ ry News Story - . wnbc.com Page 1 of 2 Hawks Grounded In Bryant Park After Chihuahua Attack Bird May Have Mistaken Dog For Ra t POSTED: 8:21 a.m. EDT~ugust 6, 2003 UPDATED: 1:17 p.m. ED August 7, 2003 NEW YORK Fearful of tiny dogs turning into hawk hors d'oeuvres, officials on Wednesday grounded an anti- 19igeon campaign employing the winged predators after one of the birds attacked a Chihuahua in Bryant Park. FeedRoom I I ~ Hawk Attacks Dog In ,Bryant Park ~ NBC 4 FeedRoom officials called for its end. ~ Slideshow: More Pictures Of The Hawk Also: Rats! Furry Rodents Taking Over City And: More Than 100 Animals Found Dead Or Starving At Pet Shop "I hope there's some way to keep the program going," said Daniel Biederman, executive director of the Bryant Park Restoration Corp. "We want to take another look to make sure something doesn't happen again." The program, considered a success since its April launch, was suspended Wednesday afternoon. Biederman said a final decision was expected by the end of the week on firing or rehiring the hawks, although city Parks Department We place the safe of park users, including their pets, over any minor inconvenience that may be caused by pigeons," said Parks spokeswoman Megan Sheekey. The hawks' first ugly encounter in four months came Tuesday afternoon in the midtown park's northwest corner, where the diminutive dog was poking around in the bushes while out for a walk with its owner. The 18-inch hawk, with its 45-inch wingspan, swooped down and gouged the Chihuahua with one of its talons. "I sincerely believe the bird mistook it for a rat because it was in the shrubbery," said Thomas Cullen, the falconer hired to run the program. The hawks patrolled the park four hours a day, five days a week, trying to frighten away the ubiquitous pigeons. The hawk, which weighs less than two pounds, was quickly separated from the pooch. A park employee flagged down a passing cab, which took the injured dog, its owner and a friend to a veterinarian's office, said Richard Dillon, vice president of security for Bryant Park. Galan -- the hawk's name -- was quickly taken out of service and returned to Cutlen's headquarters in Goshen, N.Y. The Bryant Park group picked up the doctor bill, and the dog escaped with only minor injuries, said Cullen, who spoke at a news conference in the park with one of the birds perched on his left hand. http://www.wnbc.com/print12384499/detail.html i ni~z i~nn~