FILE PHOTO
Two men placing a dead dog in a garbage bag.
Devon Evans, Gleaner Writer
Doggone it! It appears that not everyone is fond of man's best friend after all. At least, not in Lime Hall, St. Ann. Residents are now yelping in dismay after 35 dogs were found dead in the Laycock Street area of the community recently. All appeared to have been poisoned, and their owners are angry that a dog-hater in their midst has committed such a terrible act.
"If tief come ah de area, dem can come freely now. The poison neva kill all of them one time, they died over a period of time from the poison, even mother dogs giving suck to their puppies. Why would someone just poison other people's dogs like that?" asked Clive Brown, a former sports journalist and owner of four dogs that were killed.
The dead canines include both mongrels and pedigreed animals. In the last month or so, a number of residents have been angered by the loss of chickens and goats which they claim were attacked and killed by dogs. Some persons say the poisoning of the dogs may be a reprisal for those losses.
The Jamaica Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is investigating the case, which they say is a 'record number' of dead dogs.
"It is the first we have ever had so many. I've heard about 10, but never 35; it seems that someone got carried away, and now we will have to intervene... I will be going down to the community soon to do post-mortems on the dead animals," said Dr. Paul Turner, senior veterinary surgeon of the JSPCA.
chicken laced with poison
Angry residents believe that chicken laced with poison was fed to the dogs, and that whoever did it was obviously 'barking up the wrong tree'.
"How could a dog get into a chicken coop and the mesh wire was not damaged? Dem blaming the wrong people," one resident said.
They say they want the JSPCA and the police to thoroughly investigate the matter to prevent further acts of cruelty being carried out on other animals in the area. Some of the residents who reported that their dogs were killed are June Ruddock, who said she lost six dogs; Barbara Ellis, who claimed she lost five of her dogs; and Leslie Thomas, who lost all six dogs.
