Poison claims yet another pet

The dog, which was poisoned at a residential home last Wednesday, June 11, was the family’s second dog to be poisoned in a month.

At least six dogs in the City of Armadale have now died as a result of suspected poisoning since April.

After the latest incident in Roleystone, the WA RSPCA revealed there had been more than 40 reports of animal poisonings throughout Perth in the past six months.

Twenty-nine of these cases involve dogs being poisoned, seven cases of cats and five poisonings of birds and wildlife.

The May 6 edition of the Comment News reported that two dogs died of suspected 1080 poisoning at Rushton Park.

A week later, two more dogs died as a result of poisoning, but the City of Armadale announced that a Mt Nasura property was the common link to all of the suspected poisoning cases. While authorities are yet to confirm what exactly the poison is, the RSPCA is urging anyone who has information to come forward.

RSPCA chief inspector Amanda Swift said poisoning animals can lead to a slow and agonising death.

‘It is a specific offence under the Animal Welfare Act and if a person is caught and prosecuted for this offence, they can face a penalty of up to $50,000 and five years in prison,’ she said.

‘In order for RSPCA to prosecute we are calling on anyone who has any information or has witnessed any suspicious behaviour, to urgently call the RSPCA on their cruelty hotline 1300 CRUELTY.’

Emergency vets who treated one of the poisoned dogs, sent off samples for toxicology tests to determine what the poison was.

The results of these tests are expected back this week. If you suspect your pet has been poisoned, take them to the nearest vet immediately.