Charlestown Dog Owners Say Landscaper Is Poisoning Their Pets
BOSTON (CBS) - Dog owners in Charlestown are outraged. They say several dogs have gotten sick because a landscaper has been trying to poison them with hot dogs soaked in anti-freeze.
One of those dogs, Terry, and his owners Ryan and Chris O'Connell walk past the Brick Layers and Allied Craftsmen Union on Medford Street almost every day. Chris says that walk could have killed Terry, a boxer mix.
"He was throwing up and he was urinating all over the floor. He couldn't get up to go outside and go to the bathroom," he said.
Chris believes the culprit was another kind of dog. Hot dogs were thrown all over the lawn, within reach of hungry dogs.
Chris and Ryan claim they saw a landscaper soaking the hot dogs in a green liquid they believe was anti-freeze. Ryan confronted the man.
"He said are you poisoning the dogs?" Chris recalls. "And he said 'the ones that won't stay off the grass.'"
The O'Connell's gathered up the pieces of hot dog for testing and filed a report with Boston Police. As word spread, other neighbors came forward to say their dogs were poisoned too.
Marcia Cunha's dog that she calls "Big Boy" was sick for days after eating the hot dogs.
And she says it could have been worse. What if her grandchild had gotten a hold of one?
"There's a lot of foot traffic here, a lot of children in the neighborhood," she explained.
The lawn at the union headquarters has signs posted warning people to keep dogs off the grass.
Marcia doesn't blame the landscaper for being angry at dogs who made a mess on the lawn, but she says trying to kill canines with hot dogs is just plain sick.
"Maybe he should lose his job or some kind of a fine, because he did hurt the animals and a lot of owners have had not only sick dogs but medical bills," she said.
WBZ tried multiple times to reach out to the union but they would not return calls or comment.
Boston Police are investigating.
