A pet owner feared for her dog's life after she claims it was poisoned by a person “trying to be nice”.
Heather Irvine rushed her border terrier to Vets Now in Glasgow after he ate a pile of raisins and chickpeas beside the pond at Maxwell Park on Thursday, October 27.
The food was believed to have been left for ducks, but grapes and raisins are extremely toxic to dogs and can have fatal consequences.
The 43-year-old, from Pollokshields, is worried she will have to start muzzling her kind and gentle dog on walks as it isn't the first time he has been poisoned.
Last week she said he ate a chicken curry and friends told her they spotted two cooked lamb heads and raw chicken being left at the park.
She had been walking Dougal at around 6am so thought it would be safe to have him off the lead, but now fears she will be forced to restrict his freedom.
Heather told the Glasgow Times: “Dougal is a bit of a scavenger for food on the ground so if he finds something he will go for it.
“It happens all the time, last week someone left a chicken curry, but I don’t know what they think a duck is meant to do with that.
“I had to take him to the vets for an emergency appointment because he had been poisoned by raisins someone left, he was given medication to be sick.
“People might think they are being nice by leaving these foods, but it could be fatal or very serious for other animals.
“I’m at the point I will have to muzzle Dougal and not let him off the lead, which is a shame, he is a good dog.”
The vet trip cost around £700 to make sure the pet, who is almost two, was poison free.
Heather has insurance but fears other pet owners might be left seriously out of pocket if people keep leaving food behind.
She is also concerned that the food could be encouraging pests and vermin in the area despite its suspected good intentions.
She added: “They are just feeding rats and foxes, it isn’t as helpful as they think it might be.
“I don’t know if people maybe want to avoid food waste for environmental reasons or are trying to care for animal welfare, but it isn’t good.
“I know another pet owner whose dog became very sick recently after eating raw chicken at the park.
“These vets' trips are costly, luckily, I can afford insurance but not everyone can.
“I think it is an educational issue. People need to know what can happen from leaving food out.”
Pet poisonings are one of the most common emergencies our vets and vet nurses see, and statistics show around nine in 10 of these happen while pets are in their own home, according to Vets Now.
During certain holiday seasons cases go up considerably, often as a result of chocolate ingestion or cats and dogs eating foods infused with raisins, sultanas and currants. Antifreeze poisoning is another common emergency.
If you’re worried that your pet has been poisoned, call your vet or, out of hours, your nearest Vets pet emergency clinic immediately.
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