A dog owner is warning other pup parents after her new puppy picked up some food on the ground with safety pins sticking out of it.
Ally Woodgate said she took her puppy Bella out for a pee break around 9:30 a.m. Tuesday in Vancouver.
The pair turned down an alley and Bella was sniffing and licking things as she walked along. Woodgate said she saw her pup pick up something in her mouth and then spit it out.
“I saw a glint of metal in it,” she said.
As Woodgate bent down to inspect the item, Bella picked up another piece of pizza close by.
“And I open my hand and it looked like a piece of pizza crust with a safety pin sticking out of it,” she said.
She quickly put that one in her pocket and then opened Bella’s mouth to get the second piece out, which was bigger. Woodgate said it had two safety pins in it. Some of the pins found in the pizza crusts were open.
“She didn’t know what’s going on because she’s not used to me putting my fingers in her mouth,” Woodgate said of Bella, “and so I quickly put that piece in my pocket and just hauled her down the alleyway.”
Woodgate said she got back to her work in panic mode.
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“It was intentional. It wasn’t just a piece of bread. It was a piece of bread with a weapon in it.”
Woodgate said she was shaken for hours and called Vancouver police to let them know what happened.
Luckily, Bella was not badly hurt.
“My mind goes blank and my stomach is sick that someone would do this,” Woodgate said. “I don’t know if a dog is the target or just wildlife in general.”
She said regardless of what might have been the intended target, there is no excuse. She’s heard from other dog walkers in the area that they have come across food with pins in it or illicit drugs left on the street.
Eileen Drever, senior officer of protection and stakeholder relations with the BC SPCA, said it sickens her too, to hear of people intentionally trying to harm animals.
“It’s horrific. I can’t imagine anybody wishing to harm, intentionally harm an animal,” she said. “And this is a good chance to warn people, keep your dogs on leashes. It’s our duty to protect them, not everybody loves animals as we do, so we have to ensure we are protecting them and keeping them safe.”
Drever said if someone thinks their dog has ingested something, they should contact their vet immediately. And they should report the incident to the SPCA.
“If someone is intentionally trying to harm an animal, it is a cruelty investigation, which we can recommend charges under the Criminal Code of Canada,” Drever said. “And the maximum penalty, under the Criminal Code, is a $10,000 fine and five years in prison.”
She added if someone is having issues with dogs coming into their yard or being a nuisance, they can contact the local BC SPCA or their local police detachment.