Truth behind spate of suspected dog poison attacks in Brisbane parks

As social media explodes over the reported deaths of eight dogs and four more falling ill from deliberate poisonings at two inner Brisbane parks, all may not be as it seems.

WITH social media reports suggesting eight dogs have died from deliberate poisoning and four more falling ill, what is the real story behind a spate of suspected baiting at New Farm and Newstead dog parks?

According to local vets, they are aware of three deaths where the dog is suspected to have been poisoned — but the cause of death has not officially been determined in any of these cases.

Fortitude Valley Vet has confirmed the three deaths, the first being about two weeks ago.

That dog is believed to have been Marianne Ridd’s eight-year-old dog Pattie.

“When she died, we thought it was just an unexplained, natural cause of death,” she told The Courier-Mail.

“When the other two dogs presented, our vet called me to say the symptoms were the same — sudden paralysis and rapid decline of respiration into a coma.”

Pattie’s death was followed by two more — 10-month-old pup Berlin died eight hours after playing at Newstead Park and dog Chihuahua cross Corgi Kiody died after presenting with similar symptoms.

Kiody died on August 6 as a result of suspected poisoning New Farm/Newstead area.

Pattie died from suspected baiting.

According to vets, all three dogs are suspected of dying after ingesting a poison but none are confirmed cases of poisoning.

None of the owners witnessed their dogs eating discarded meat but vets suspected poisoning because of the rapid onset of similar symptoms in each case.

Absolute confirmation can only come via a post mortem and none of the dogs have had this, vets say.

Stomach fluid can also be tested but the test is expensive and unreliable. This test has not been done on any of the three dogs.

A fourth dog, a 40kg dog named Pablo, was brought into Fortitude Valley Vet clinic after rat pellets were found in his faeces. But tests found the dog had not been adversely affected by ingesting the pellets, likely due to his size and the amount ingested.

Fortitude Valley Vet has had inquiries from dog owners concerned about their pets being lethargic, but none of those appeared seriously ill.

Staff at Pet Emergency at Stafford Heights — a 24-hour emergency vet clinic — were not aware of any suspected poisoning cases at their clinic. And staff at Animal Emergency Kedron were only aware of one unconfirmed case.

Greencross Vets Animal Emergency Centre at Woolloongabba have had no confirmed cases, although multiple concerned owners from dog parks have brought their dogs in for assessment.

The author of a widely-shared social media post claiming eight deaths and four more cases of sick dogs told The Courier-Mail they had relied on “community reports” to tally cases.

Ten-month-old Berlin is suspected to have died of poisoning.

Social media reports have also suggested discarded meat has been found at Brisbane’s Waterfront Park — including a post by one person that including a photograph of the meat — but council staff have not found anything in their searches of New Farm and Newstead.

However, Fortitude Valley Vet confirmed a small piece of mince was handed to them after it was found by a dog walker in Hawthorne. The vet contacted police but it is unclear whether the meat would be tested.

A Queensland Police spokesman said they had received two formal complaints of dog poisoning and encouraged any other victims to call Policelink on 131 444.

“Investigations have commenced, and officers are liaising with the RSPCA and the Brisbane City Council to coordinate any investigative activity and preventative action,” the spokesman said.

“The identity of the poison or precise cause of death is yet to be established.

“Additional patrols are been conducted of dog park locations and anyone with further information is urged to contact police.”

The concern over possible poisoning cases spread to celebrity vet Dr Chris Brown, who posted advice to dog owners on his Facebook page this morning.

Dr Chris Brown has given advice to dog owners on how to avoid poisoning. Picture: Tim Pascoe.

“While identifying early warning signs such as vomiting (often containing green or blue pellets), excess salivation and muscle tremors help to avoid disaster, preventing dogs swallowing baits is obviously the best solution,” he wrote.

“Here are your top tips to prevent encounters — keep dogs on leashes in suspect areas.

“Create a blanket rule of no scavenging for ‘park snacks’.

“Learn and use the ‘drop it’ command.

“If you’re worried your dog has swallowed something suspicious, speak to your vet. One injection can help them bring up the bait quickly before it takes effect.”