A Capitol Hill man says his dog found a dangerous treat apparently left by somebody as a cruel trap on Federal Ave E near Harrison Monday.
Mark Michael writes in to tell us about the peanut butter-covered rat poison he and his dog encountered on a walk. Michael says the deadly treat looks like a “gnawed up corn cob.”
Michael said he is also going to call the police about this incident today.
Sorry to cause concern but we figured it would be better to be safe than sorry. At least dogs and their friends don’t have to worry about electrified utility poles now, right?
I mean, it’s a royally stupid thing to do, and should be punished, but I like to think whoever put it out there doesn’t want to kill dogs.
I’d love to think that as well, but wasn’t there some yahoo a few years ago leaving poison in dog parks?
Sooo… how did he identify it as rat poison? Did the CHS followup, ask for a picture? Ask how he knows its rat poison? Is it a box that says ‘Rat Poison’ on it? If it looks like a corncob… how does he know what it is?
So far all we have is someone who says they found something with no details of how he determined what it is. And you just print that?
Details folks. The devil is in them.
You’re awfully interested in defending this waste of skin, non. Are YOU the culprit?
Since I know ladies read these posts, I won’t type what I really think of whatever kind of POS who would leave something like that out for dogs to find.
1) We asked for a picture but unfortunately Michael did not take one.
2) He did not have a rat to test the poison. Perhaps you can supply one.
3) I never said this was more than one man’s report. I’ll add more as we learn more.
4) We get a lot of tips at CHS. Figuring out which ones to follow up on and share is part of the job. I’ll admit that this one is close to the line but, like I noted above, it’s a clear case of better safe than sorry. If Michael is mistaken, we apologize for besmirching the good name of your fellow man and woman.
People like you are interesting, non. Drawn like moths to the flame to something you seem to dislike so much. You can take as many swipes at my credibility that you like but to choose a possible peanut butter dog poison post to go off on is just peculiar.
No, I’m not defending anyone. Please read carefully, for comprehension, not thoughtless kneejerk reaction. Did I say that the supposed ‘waste of skin’ is justified in his supposed ‘peanut butter corncob canine assasination pogrom’? No.
I’m pointing out that this post is pointless at best, and at worst needlessly alarms people when there is no indication that anyone found anything other than a peanut butter covered corncob. This is capitol hill, a peanut butter covered corn cob could be used for any number of things! Not letting your dog eat garbage on the sidewalk is just sound judgement. Any dog owner who lets their pet eat garbage is irresponsible and a poor steward of the animal’s well being.
If it IS rat poison, then sure, that is possibly worth mentioning. But some random dude thinks he found poison and is maybe going to call the police about it later, is not newsworthy.
This is just crappy journalism with not facts.
I bet it’s meant to kill squirrels. It was probably placed in someone’s yard but the squirrels drug it out into the open.
I dunno, it sounds like a good heads up to remind people that they need to be really aware of what their dogs/pets are getting into while out for a walk. Common snese, yes- but a little reminder never hurts any of us.
How in the world does he know it’s covered in rat poison?
@jseattle
i can’t see defending non (his comment is a bit – harsh) but i can side with his sentiment. i totally understand your rationale of wanting to tip the neighborhood/get the word out about a potentially dangerous situation; it’s one of the reasons i have your blog in my reader. i just think, however, that this post leaves a little to be desired. personally, it strikes me as something i’d see on the slog; a little sensationalist with not much corroborating information. that’s my opinion.
to non’s point though, how does mark KNOW this was rat poison? so he didn’t have a rat, did he pick the “gnawed up corn cob” and take it somewhere to be tested? is he a poison control specialist? i can point to a lump of crap on the sidewalk, call it gold, but that don’t make it that the sidewalks of capitol hill are dotted with chunks of gold. i just think it might have been more helpful to wait for a few more details before posting.
but, again, my opinion. take that feedback as you will.
What Jay said.
There need not be anything malicious afoot here for it to be 1) a concern to dog owners, and 2) a reminder to keep tabs on where dogs’ noses and mouths go while walking. I have to be super-vigilant with my guy just to keep him out of the chicken bone he could likely dig out of a pile of manure, if I let him.
So…sourced or not, confirmed or not…I appreciate the heads-up.
Zeebleoop, that’s fair. But anybody who thinks that I’m in a rush to get dog poisoning posts onto the site should think again. I try not to put myself in the position of trusting anybody in this job — individual testimony is often flawed by confusion or bias and, sometimes, mal intent.
So, dogs, peanut butter, poison. Sounds like nobody else has encountered this recently on the Hill. I’ll follow up with SPD to see if they have anything connected to this report.
Whoever set it out to kill rats needed to secure it in a rat hole (or in the corner of your basement), as per the instructions. They aren’t for laying around your garden where other animals or children can eat or touch it.
Someone poisoned dogs in Portland parks mebbe 7 years ago. It was horrible, several dogs died. And the police never figured out who did it. Seems totally plausible.
The address in this post where the poison was found, is right in front of the house where my dog sitter lives. She is a retired lady who runs a small dog walking/sitting business out of her place. This makes it seem even less random, and more targeted. Maybe one of her neighbors don’t like the amount of dogs she brings in and out of her place?
I’m also going to have to say that this was a pretty sensationalist article to claim that this was a “trap” left for pups. I mean, do dogs really like peanut butter that much? I agree with others that this sounds more like a squirrel trap.
You could have just reported that dog owners should beware because this hazard was found in a dog-accessible area and then let your commenters speculate on any nefarious theories regarding dog targetting
you mean the address of “Federal Ave E near Harrison”? is that north of harrison, south; which direction? seems less like an address than a vicinity. so there’s no way of knowing who, if anyone, was being targeted.
it’s fine to be vigilant, especially with animals and children that rely upon you for their care; but it’s another thing to make wild speculations with little supporting facts.
A few months ago our dog got seriously sick and our vet asked if it were possible that she had been poisoned. There’s someone in our neighborhood (up on 17th/18th) that puts some kind of food out in the grassy area between the sidewalk and the streets. If we’re not careful, our dog dives into it. We try to keep her away, but if it’s dark sometimes we don’t see she’s munching until it’s too late. We still don’t know what caused her problem, but we’re much more vigilant to not let her eat ANYTHING outside.
Joe,
YES. Dogs friggen LOVE peanut butter. (well, most of them, anyway). It’s the best way to get a dog to swallow a pill, by encasing it in peanut butter.
people really put out poison to kill squirrels, happy renter? that is so sad if true.
i know of a dog that had a stroke from getting into rat poison. she was completely paralyzed except for her head and tail. her mobility and sight has slowly come back and she is about 80% better, where she will stay now. the vet bills were thousands of dollars, but the worst was seeing the dog unable to move or see and how confused she was.
please put flyers in your neighbors mailboxes asking them nicely to deal with their rat problem in a responsible way.
For Christ sake, people will bitch about anything. Thank you so much for your thoughts Judgy McJudgerson.
As a dog owner, I appreciate being informed of this information – now, as I was – as it hurts nothing in this instance, and certainly acts as a warning.
jseattle says in the article “Sorry to cause concern,but we figured it would be better to be safe than sorry.” This might have served as an indicator to your giant journalistic integrity seeking brain that – oh, let’s see, I don’t know, just maybe it is a warning to be safe, as opposed to a sourced news article that may be submitted for a Pulitzer.
You say “This is just crappy journalism with not facts.” That sentence is just crappy writing with “not” spell-checking. And, clearly and blatantly wrong to boot. This isn’t journalism, and wasn’t presented as such. In your moment of urgency to express your critical superiority, you neglected to form a full analytical thought first. Please try to stop that.
Absolutely right. I don’t have a dog anymore, but if I still did, I’d appreciate hearing this. It doesn’t even have to really have been rat poison for the message to still be of use: watch what your dog tries to eat while you’re walking him/her. I know my little garbage disposal would stick her nose voraciously into anything she’d find, and gobble away. The fact that this COULD have been poison illustrates why we can’t let them do that. Even if it wasn’t, it still proves the same point.
Thanks, jseattle.
Zeebleoop, you are an idiot.