Dunedin dog owners are being urged to keep an eye out for ‘‘greeny-blue’’ matchbox-sized rat bait cubes in John Wilson Ocean Dr after the poisoning of several dogs at the weekend.
The incidents have ‘‘absolutely horrified’’ the dog owners, who believe someone may have done it intentionally.
The Dunedin City Council has confirmed the bait came from one of its bait stations, which had been vandalised.
The act was met with widespread contempt online.
It turned out to be rat poison, and when she saw him eating it, she was horrified.
‘‘The bait was just placed on the ground around the rubbish bin.
‘‘It looked like greeny-blue tinged boxes, about the size of matchboxes - each with a hole in it.
‘‘My dog ate two, and then I found another three around that rubbish bin.
‘‘I kind of panicked and I actually rang my vet and said, ‘Look, I think he has eaten rat bait’.’’
She said the St Kilda Vet clinic was ‘‘amazing’’ and saw them within 30 minutes of her call.
‘‘He was given some eye drops and then immediately, he vomited the rat bait back up.’’
Later, she returned to the area and tried to clear up any remaining bits of bait, but she remained concerned other dogs may have eaten it and their owners would not realise until it was too late.
So she notified the public about the danger on Facebook.
She also contacted the Dunedin City Council, and a Delta contractor was sent to search the area for more pellets.
A DCC spokesman said the incident was ‘‘incredibly disappointing’’.
The contractor found a bait station which had been ‘‘damaged, exposing the bait’’.
‘‘Our contractors checked the surrounding area thoroughly and confirmed no further vandalism has taken place.’’
He said the bait stations were part of the council’s normal predator control efforts and had been used in the area for more than 10 years.
‘‘They are tamper-resistant, anchored stations, designed to protect non-target species, and are used widely across the country following best practice guidelines.’’
Because someone had gone to the trouble to open the bait box and put the pellets around the rubbish bin, Mrs Douglas and other dog owners believed it was a deliberate attempt to poison dogs in the area.
Another dog owner, who declined to be named, said she had taken her pet to a Dunedin vet the day before, after it also ate bait from the same area.
‘‘I’m absolutely horrified that somebody would intentionally put that there, and there’s also the fact that it’s so popular in the weekend for children.
‘‘It’s so malicious.’’
Several other dog owners responded to Mrs Douglas’ Facebook message, saying their dogs had also been poisoned in the area.
She estimated there could have been hundreds of dogs on the road over the weekend, and urged the owners to contact their vets immediately.
Fortunately, all of the reported poisoned dogs had recovered after treatment.
Vets@StClair veterinarian and owner Dr Sarah Stephen said most rat baits had a characteristic green/blue colour, but dogs and cats had poor colour vision and might mistake it for food.
They also contained anticoagulants, which caused dogs to die from internal bleeding.
Symptoms included weakness and the dog might be cold, their gums might be pale, and sometimes they had nose bleeds or blood in their urine or faeces.
She said it could take several days for a dog to show symptoms after eating the poison and it was lethal if left untreated.
She urged dog owners who had been in the area recently to contact their vet immediately.
‘‘If there’s been any doubt about whether they’ve eaten the poison, seek advice from your local vet.’’
Police and the SPCA were concerned by the incident, but said no-one had laid an official complaint yet.
They would investigate if sufficient evidence was provided.
