Meet Piedmont's New Animal Control Officer, Monica Hueston

Monica Hueston, a former college basketball player who would like to study veterinary medicine someday, was sworn into office Thursday as the Piedmont Police Department's newest animal control officer.

Hueston was chosen from among a half dozen finalists for the position, a list whittled down from a large number of applicants, Police Chief Rikki Goede said.

She is currently training with Piedmont's other animal control officer, London Rivera, a seven-year veteran of the local police department, who said she can already tell that Hueston is "good with animals."

Hueston is "learning a lot about about our wildlife problems" during the 10-week training period, London said.

She said those problems often include complaints about skunks from Piedmont residents — "They don't like the smell" — and rescues of orphaned baby wildlife, which are taken to Yggdrasil Urban Wildlife Rescue in Oakland or the Lindsay Museum's wildlife rehabilitation hospital in Walnut Creek.

Animal control officers also deal with a range of other animal-related issues, from rounding up stray dogs (they go to the Berkeley Animal Shelter if the owners can't be located) to disposal of deceased animals hit by passing vehicles.

Occasionally they are called on to rescue a deer that's gotten its head stuck between the bars of an iron fence in a Piedmont garden, London said.

Piedmont shares its two animal control officers with Emeryville under an agreement between the two cities.

Hueston replaces long-time animal control officer George Cyr, who retired in December.

Once Hueston's training is completed, Piedmont will again have seven-day-a-week animal control coverage, London said. Officers are also on call for nighttime emergencies.

Hueston, 32, grew up in Fairfield and attended the University of California, Santa Cruz for two years before transferring to Towson University near Baltimore, MD. She worked as a veterinary assistant before joining the Piedmont Police Department.

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