Redlynch teen finds dead dog disposed in commercial bin

GRAPHIC WARNING: The horrific discovery of a dead dog disposed of in a commercial bin has sparked concern - but the veterinary clinic involved said it’s standard practice across the industry.

The horrific sight of a dead dog disposed in a bin has sparked concern among residents, with the veterinary clinic saying it’s standard practice.

Thirteen-year-old Claudia Waller was taking out the trash at her mother’s office at Redlynch Commercial Centre when she saw a wheelie bin overflowing with large bags in the middle of the room.

Noticing something with a golden, sandy colour in the commercial bins, Ms Waller realised she had made a horrible discovery.

“I walked over and saw it was a dog’s paw,” she said.

Thirteen-year-old Claudia Waller was shocked when she discovered a Redlynch veterinary clinic disposing of animal carcasses in a wheelie bin behind the business. Picture: Brendan Radke

Seeing the words “burial” and “cremation” on the bag, Ms Waller realised what she had discovered.

Ms Waller said she believed the bags to come from My Pet Hub Redlynch, which operates around the corner from the commercial bin where the dog was found.

“I put in a complaint to the council because it’s a commercial waste and bio health hazard. The Council was very helpful and said they would follow up,” Ms Waller’s mother Diane Wilcocks said.

A spokesperson from My Pet Hub Redlynch said while the discovery was horrific for the person involved, they were following standard veterinary clinic procedures to dispose of dead animals.

“What happens in all vet clinics with euthanasia or if an animal dies at home is that families are given burial, cremation and clinical disposal options. In the case they choose clinical disposal, we organise days and times for (a private contractor) to come and collect the bodies,” the spokesperson said.

A sead dog’s paw pokes through bag discovered by Claudia Waller. Picture: Dianne Willcocks

“Everything is done legally and it’s not a secret we try and hide from people. When people choose that option, we never lie to them about what happens and we use designated skip bins in a commercial area that is not open to the public.

“The general public are unaware of how these things work so it’s understandable that they’re horrified but unfortunately there’s not much else we can do.”

The company spokesperson said the dogs were put in biohazard bags before ending up in specific bins which council collect “within hours”.

They said sometimes paws tore through the bag and the pet should then be re-bagged but in this instance chalked the incident up to “human error”, where the staff mustn’t have noticed.

“We don’t aim to have foots sticking out of the bag,” the spokesperson said.

“It’s stuff we brought up in the staff meeting.”

A Cairns Regional Council spokesperson said clinical waste bins are organised by vets with commercial waste operators to dispose of animals.

“Each commercial waste operator will have their own rules in place for disposal or collection requirements, which may include freezing of bodies prior to disposal,” the spokesperson said.

Originally published as Redlynch teen finds dead dog disposed in commercial bin