Tough and tender officer saves homeless and distressed animals

Tristan Kiekel is a modern-day Wonder Woman – part cop, part kind and giving human being. During her 13 years as a Yale Police Officer, she has been involved in many criminal investigations and stressful situations while on duty. But policing is not all about crime; it’s also about being part of a community. Tristan embodies all of that by helping people and also homeless animals.

On patrols, she often comes across stray dogs and cats. Many are sick, hungry, or abused. Over the past few years, she has developed an animal rescue network that includes Yale and New Haven Community members and local shelters. Under her leadership, this network helps save, feed, donate toward medical costs, and eventually rehome these forgotten strays.

“Many times, while out on patrol, I come across friendly, abandoned animals in distress. As a police officer, I believe it’s important to help our local community as a whole, meaning assisting both humans and animals. In the past year, I’ve noticed the number of abandoned animals has increased. I feel this is because of the hardships caused by the pandemic,” said Officer Kiekel.

In addition to the homeless animals she comes across, Tristan also helps pet owners in need. She often assists individuals who can’t afford veterinary care or can no longer keep their pets. Through the network she’s built, Tristan puts them in touch with rescue groups or will personally make the effort to rehome the cat or dog. She also works to educate Yale students, staff members, and New Haven residents who are feeding stray cats about a process called trap, neuter, return (TNR), and teams up with them to follow the process.

While the animals may be in distress, many are fearful and scared, so Tristan and her team have had to catch and trap a few. Many cats are feral, not able to be socialized or rehomed, so she works with local animal rescue groups to humanely trap, neuter, and return them to the outdoors. Once the cats are safely brought back to a specific area, other volunteers come and regularly feed them. “Besides helping the animals, I’ve met many wonderful and caring people who are willing to help. I’m part of this community and when I’m patrolling, feel I must help in any way possible,” said Office Kiekel.

Without the TNR process, a cat colony’s population can grow from 2 to 100 cats and kittens in a Officer Tristan Kiekel helps people and animals.

matter of months. Tristan and her network are helping to keep the feral cat population down in New Haven. “I’ve been working with a couple of local independent rescuers who help me to humanely trap, fix, and then return any of the feral cats I find,” said Officer Kiekel.

This grassroots, all-volunteer rescue effort is also a family affair, with Tristan getting help from her mother and brother. “My mother, Joelle Barnes, is licensed with the State of CT to do wildlife rehabilitation. She has assisted me for years when I find distressed wildlife like birds, raccoons, etc. My brother helps too. Recently he climbed a tree on Brewster Street to get a cat down. It’s a family tradition to help animals in need,” said Officer Kiekel.

These rescues are made possible by the many volunteers and rescue groups that support Tristan’s efforts. Together they work to find the animals’ owners or get them placed into permanent homes.

HUGE THANKS to the following groups for helping with the rescue and placement of many cats:

• Halfway Home Rescue
• The Animal Haven
• Valley Shore Animal Welfare League
• Branford Compassion Club

Special thanks to these wonderful individuals who help care for homeless cats and dogs:

• Linda Blackwell 
• Sarah Bleicher 
• Wesley Burket
• Alex Cade  
• Tiffany Cimini 
• Todd and Pam Clifford  
• Tom Connelly  
• Susan Dowd 
• Pilar Foster 
• Tony Pensiero 
• Steve Satonick