Animal Law
‘Circles’ Was a Sitting Duck Until Order of Protection Granted
Posted Apr 4, 2008, 11:38 am CST
By Debra Cassens Weiss
Circles the duck has an order of protection that bars any quack-pot neighboring youths from harming her.
Circles’ owner, Janet Lippincott of Mastic, N.Y., told Newsday the duck was injured when a group of teens fired at her with pellet guns. Court papers say one pellet pierced Circle’s larynx and cost the Lippincott family $200 in veterinary bills.
Judge John Iliou of Central Islip granted an order of protection for Lippincott’s family as well as the duck in a court hearing yesterday. He acted under a 2006 New York law that allows pets to be included in orders of protection.
A 21-year-old neighbor has been charged with animal cruelty in the attack.
The story has this correction at the end: “An earlier version of this article ... misidentified the duck's breed. It is Pekin, not Peking.”