Friday, April 3, 2009

News Reel - Ontario dogs poisoned

Well, I live in Ontario, so it's no surprise that I'm more aware of what is happening in the news here than in other provinces or states. Sorry. If there is a news story you know about that I should post, please feel free to let me know.

Recently there have been dog poisonings and dog owners are told to be on the lookout. I can't even begin to tell you all what I think of the people who leave the poison in parks. Asshat doesn't cover it.

March 24, 2009 ~ (Port Perry)
3 dogs sickened by poisoned cupcakes left in park in Ont. town
Tainted baked goods poison Ontario dogs

March 27, 2009 ~ (Whitby)
Dog poisoned in Whitby park

March 31, 2009 ~ (Oakville)
Oakville parks reopen after poison scare

Ok, so the last one wasn't really poison. It actually was flour that some group had put down on the ground to mark out a running path. It did make a dog sick though.

And the first one - well, apparantly police are actually thinking the cupcakes were left for children and not dogs. Doesn't that make you shudder? One news anchor asked the question why would someone go to all the trouble to make cupcakes for dogs? Dogs don't care what it looks like - so long as it tastes good.

I have a few questions ... they may seem basic, but I have to ask ...

Why are the dogs allowed to eat these things? What in the world is the owner doing when their dog is eating these piles of flour or poisoned cupcakes?? Cloudwatching? Lollygagging? Singing and dancing? Tra-la-la-la-la?

From what I can tell, these dogs did NOT eat said poisons while in a dog park. It just says park. Is the dog not properly contained on a leash if it is not a dog park? If it is on a leash, why are you allowing the dogs to eat anything when it is on leash??

One of the most important things I teach a dog is that they are not allowed to eat anything when they are on a leash. That has saved many a pizza crust in the park. Perhaps other dog owners might want to "take up the torch" to teach this behaviour to their dogs?

I'm probably asking too much - many owners can't even bother with basic obedience.

6 comments:

OldMorgans said...

Very sad and children could way too easily have been the victims instead of dogs.
And you expect people to pay attention to what their dogs are doing on leash? Yeah, right. Many people watch Cesar Milan but very few emulate him.

sagebeasties.blogspot.com

DogsDeserveFreedom said...

I suppose my expectations of dog owners are a bit too high, eh?

GoLightly said...

Oh, yeah, DDF, I read about it.
It's my biggest fear. There are some really sick people in the world..

Got any good poison proofing tips?

I worry about Flip, my Blaze is "pretty" good, but if you have any other good ideas?
I've got them both okay with "drop/leave" anything, except for Flip.
If she vanishes, I FREAK! She is deaf, when she's um, busy.

Thank goodness I live outside the city. My biggest worry in my conservation area is broken frickin' beer bottles, left by idiots.

Gimme a hint. Are you in Toronto?
GTA?
I am too old to be a stalker, ya know.

Denbeath said...

The world is full of evil, black-hearted people who have zero respect for 'life'. I hope the police find the vermin who is doing this.

Cyndi and Stumpy said...

about 98% of the time i am so grateful to be living so far out in the boonies that I hardly have to deal with the human race.

Thanks for stopping by my blog!! One day I hope to post something original...

DogsDeserveFreedom said...

OldMorgans - you're right. What was I thinking? Most dog owners will never pay attention to their dog when they are walking it. I have found that people are very pro-Cesar regarding the specific ways to resolve the problems (ex. alpha-roll your aggressive dog), but most won't bother to do any background training that he suggests.

GoLightly - personally, what I do is number one, I have my vet on speed dial; just in case. It takes me 30 minutes to drive in to my chosen vet clinic (15-20 to get anywhere else) so I have to be proactive when it comes down to the minutes. One of the things I did was learn how to induce vomiting. This is important to know in case your dog does eat something terrible (like poison).

I will post some links regarding pro-active training you can do with your dogs. It takes some work, but the results are priceless.

And, no. I am not in the city. I live in the country close enough to drive to most "cities".

Patty - I agree. Sometimes I wish we could give the same back to them ...

giantspeckledchihuahua - Yes, for this reason, I am glad that we live in the country too. Glad you popped by!