El Cajon

A baby less than a day old, its umbilical cord still attached, was found abandoned on the doorstep of an El Cajon residence Wednesday morning and was reported to be in excellent condition at a foster home, the Sheriff’s Department said Thursday.

The boy was released to the Social Services Department at 2 p.m. and later placed in a foster home, said Ron Cottingham of the sheriff’s child abuse unit.

The infant may be Latino, weighs 7 pounds, 13 ounces, and is 19 1/2 inches long, Cottingham said. Detectives and hospital officials said the condition of the umbilical cord that was attached to the baby indicated that the child was not born at a hospital.

Sheriff’s detectives said Nancy Howart told authorities that her son was inside their home in the 4700 block of Nolan Place about 7:30 a.m. when he told her he thought he heard a wounded animal in the front yard.

“They went outside to check and they found the newborn baby literally on their doorstep,” Cottingham said.

“As to why and how the baby was left, we’re leaving it open. It could have been a young, scared teen-ager, or someone too poor to care for the child.”

The Sheriff’s Department asks that anyone with information regarding the baby call 565-5200.