Poison Intended for Rat Infestation Kills Three Dogs Instead on New York City Streets

After accidentally ingesting poison meant to treat a rat infestation, three dogs perished in New York City.

When he brought Cali, a cute Rottweiler puppy of 3 months old, back to his home in Washington Heights last summer, Ralph Edwards was ecstatic. She quickly earned the family's love and affection.

But then, two weeks ago, the energetic dog suddenly fell gravely ill early one morning.

The dog wasn't eating, was acting sluggish, and even appeared to be very depressed, according to 42-year-old Edwards, the building superintendent. When Cali was taken to the veterinarian, she was given antibiotics and put through several tests.

Organ Failure

The dog had to go to the hospital with Edwards. The dog, however, started to deteriorate when Edwards picked it up from the hospital.

According to Edwards, the dog's liver and kidneys had failed.

Edwards was forced to make the agonizing decision to euthanize the sick dog. Although veterinarians were unable to determine with certainty what brought on the puppy's rapid deterioration. They initially suspected leptospirosis but Cali tested negative. He now believes it was rat poison she ingested from city streets.

Edwards said that Only poison could have caused something else to pass through her so quickly. They didn't take the rottweiler anywhere or leave the city when she was a puppy or do anything similar. Just going for neighborhood walks was all there was.

Cholecalciferol Rat Poison Pellets

Schwarzman Animal Medical Center's Dr. Ann Marie Zollo, claims that cholecalciferol rat poison pellets, which are frequently dispersed throughout the city to control the rodent population, are a common cause of kidney failure in dogs. Zollo is a specialist in Emergency and Critical Care.

Zollo claims that it essentially provides an excess of vitamin D, which can ultimately result in high calcium and kidney failure, Granthshala News reports.

In the Washington Heights neighborhood where Cali lived and frequently walked, two additional dogs have recently passed away. Again, according to Edwards, rat poison was most likely to blame. Since then, neighbors have distributed flyers warning pet owners along Cabrini Boulevard.

Read also: Delighted Pet Owner Discovers Dog is Related to One of Queen Elizabeth's Corgis 

Memo on Pink Pellets

It was an extremely sad turn of events for Cali, according to Edwards. Now that awareness-building is the goal, dog owners in this neighborhood take care of one another.

Additionally, 140 Cabrini Boulevard's property management is attempting to spread awareness. Residents of the building received an email warning them to watch out for "pink pellets" on the ground close to the building.

The memo requested that people walk their dogs in the area with caution and alert other dog walkers to the problem. The memo also made clear that building supers had not been dispersing the poison, Head Topics reports.

Zollo said that The person who is doing this might not have any connection to the properties.

However, the problem of dogs being susceptible to rat poison is not specific to the neighborhood of upper Manhattan.

Zollo added that unfortunately, this kind of thing happens occasionally. Because there are rodents all over New York City, it could occur anywhere in the city.

Rodents of New York

Locals have spotted over 21,500 scurrying rodents, up from 18,601 during the same period in 2021, a 70% increase in recent rodent sightings in the city.

However, according to Zollo, there may be another factor contributing to the current high frequency of cases.

She said that since more people acquired pets during the pandemic, there might have been a slight increase as a result. Whatever the cause, dog owners suffer greatly as a result of poisonings, New York Post reports.

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