It was a tragic site at Middlefield’s dog park this past week when visitors found the remains of little Mr. Puggles, a three year old pug. Mr. Puggles was found inside of the small dog area of the park. The unidentified owners claimed “We thought we were doing the responsible thing by putting our precious Mr. Puggles in the small area “. Undoubtedly they meant to protect him from the dogs running around the large dog area.

The owners left Mr. Puggles unattended while they hiked the trails around the dog park. They came across a party on the hill top, and didn’t return until the next morning. Upon their return, Animal Control was on the scene along with a traumatized family. That’s then they learned that giant mosquitoes attacked Mr Puggles draining him of his blood. Animal Control credited Mr. Puggles with taking out of few of the bugs with him. Of course this is small relief for everyone involved.

The mosquito is believed to be the giant sized Psorophora ciliata, originally found in Central America. While unheard of in the north east, entomologists have warned that global warming is causing the habitat to expand for a variety of insect species normally found in tropical regions. Animal Control indicated that this is the first sighting of this insect in Middlefield.

Terrified residents have called for the use of DDT to eliminate the mosquito population. Of course one unnamed environmentally conscious resident asked “What would Rachel Carson say about using DDT to protect the neighborhood?” In response, MI was told “We’d rather have a few muties around here rather than see our children carried off by giant critters.”

No decision has been made about charging Mr. Puggles owners with animal endangerment.