The number of dog poisoning cases in Centurion has spiked and residents say they are living in fear.
Six dogs were poisoned in Lyttelton last Thursday. Two of them belonged to Lyttelton resident Lezanne de Beer, two to her landlord, and two to a neighbour.
Four of the dogs did not survive and two were taken to the vet, where they were treated with success.
One of the two survivors was De Beer’s Bull Terrier puppy, Deon. The other dog, a neighbour’s mixed breed, was still in a critical condition.
De Beer’s other dog, a Jack Russell Terrier, did not make it.
“We suspect that the people who fed our dogs the poison were actually trying to break into our homes. They did not get in, but did steal a lawn trimmer from the back of my husband’s pick-up truck,” De Beer said.
“The Lyttelton community policing forum (CPF) responded to our call quickly when we just discovered the dogs and were extremely helpful.”
The case in Lyttelton is just one of a string of attempted and successful dog poisoning episodes in Centurion.
On 10 November, Lyttelton residents found a plastic bag in their yard containing Vienna sausages laced with the pesticide Temik, commonly known as ‘two-step’. Fortunately for the owners the dogs had not eaten any of the poisoned food.
On Sunday 23 November, another bag of meat containing ‘two-step’ was found in a garden in Ebonywood Street, Heuweloord.
Hannes du Buisson, head of the Lyttelton Sector 3 CPF, urged people to be cautious.
“Dogs are often poisoned when they are roaming free in the yard. We urge people to keep their dogs in the back of their yards and keep them safe. Criminals aren’t easily deterred by dogs, so they often just end up hurting them. People should also rather feed their dogs at night so that they won’t be inclined to eat the poisoned bait.”
De Beer said: “At this stage, I just want to warn other dog owners. The festive season is approaching and I urge everyone to be on the lookout for anything suspicious.”
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