Dog News

Dog owners irate after finding cayenne pepper dumped on neighbourhood lawns

by ADMIN

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Pet owners in Seattle are furious over the actions a property manager has taken to keep dogs off her lawn.  Cayenne pepper was intentionally dumped all over the lawn to send a message to pet owners that failure to pick up after their dogs would not be tolerated.  The problem is that the pepper , in such quantities, is quite dangerous for dogs and has resulted in at least one dog sustaining burns to the pads of her feet that required veterinary attention.

Fredda Starr is the property manager of the “Greenwood Court Manor” apartments, and she says she did not mean to hurt any animals.  “I do love dogs, but I don’t like all the poo that they leave over the ground,” said Starr, who did agree to stop and to dilute the pepper avoid harming the dogs.  In addition to spreading the pepper, Starr left the empty containers scattered around the area rather than putting them in the trash.

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Pepper is not a toxic substance but can cause problems for animals who ingest or walk on it.  “It upsets the stomach, burns the inside and may cause a little diarrhea,” said Dr. Zile Singh, a veterinarian at Greenwood Animal Hospital.

Gujral Wallace, the owner of the dog that was harmed was outraged, saying “It’s absolutely despicable, their intentions is what scares me,” and asking “How does that even get into your head? Are you that evil?”  Her dog, who is named Buddha, suffered burns on her legs and incurred several hundred dollars in vet bills.   If this had happened to a smaller dog, it could have been much more serious.   Wallace says she is going to rally local residents to do a better job of keeping the area clean of pet waste.