'Such a violation': B.C. woman says dogs poisoned by backyard intruder
'Such a violation': B.C. woman says dogs poisoned by backyard intruder
This photo submitted by Diedra, a B.C. dog owner, shows the two pups she says were poisoned in December of 2022.
A woman from B.C.'s Okanagan is shaken and keeping a close eye on her beloved dogs after she says they were poisoned by someone who snuck into her backyard and left trays of meat doused in anti-freeze for the pups to eat.
Deidra, who did not want to give her last name, livesin Lake Country. She tells CTV News her dogs got sick on Thursday evening. She let them out to relieve themselves around dinner time. When Jake, a three-year-old Aussiedoodle and Sofiya. , a four-year-old Bernedoodle returned, it was immediately clear something was wrong.
"They came back in and immediately started vomiting and then wanted to go right back outside. It's dark outside already at four o'clock, so I went out there with them and I found two big trays of meat in our yard – one placed in one corner, one placed in another," she said.
"It was really alarming but my first thought wasn't to think that somebody's poisoning them."
The next morning, with the dogs still lethargic and ill, Diedra took another look at the trays she had put in her freezer and found the contents hadn't frozen at all overnight.
"It was really scary," she told CTV News, saying she then rushed the animals to the vet.
A dog owner in B.C. says these trays of meat, that were doused in a liquid she believes was anti-freeze, were left in her backyard. Photo submitted to CTV News.
The canines' condition has improved since Friday, and Diedra says by Sunday they had more energy and had finally eaten something.
But she's still extremely rattled and has installed a security camera to capture what happens in her yard.
"It's such a violation. It just makes you not want to be outside of your house. I will not let them outside without me right beside them at all -- and I never will,' she said.
Diedra says she reported the incident to police, who told her they have not received any similar complaints. However, officers have been following up and patrolling the area.
"They have been here constantly. It's something that it seems like they are taking very seriously which is comforting," she said.
The neighbourhood, according to Diedra is home to multiple dog owners whom she has since warned about what happened to her pets.
"Everyone is on high alert. Nobody's letting their dog out of their house. Everybody is like terrified," she added.
Until she has some answers about who may have done this and why, she's hoping no other dogs will be harmed and that whoever came onto her property does not return.
The Kelowna RCMP, in a statement, is asking for anyone with information to contact them immediately.
"The RCMP will continue to investigate this completely unnecessary and extremely cruel crime," wrote Const. Mike Della-Paolera.
A gay man is taking the federal government to court, challenging the constitutionality of a policy restricting sexually active gay and bisexual men from donating to sperm banks in Canada, CTV News has learned.
A Quebec woman said she was very surprised to find her stolen Audi had been used in what’s being described as an “absolutely insane” Ontario mall robbery.
A team of preteen Ukrainian refugees that have been scattered across Europe by war arrived Wednesday in Quebec City, where they'll get the chance to compete in a renowned hockey tournament.
Nearly a year since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, community organizers say there is still work to be done to help the thousands of Ukrainian refugees looking to start a new life in Canada while coping with the hardships they've faced coming here.
After a tiny radioactive capsule went missing in the Australian outback, an expert in Canada says the likelihood of the same happening in this country is unlikely, given our strong regulations governing the handling of radioactive materials.
As Black History Month gets underway, Canada Post has unveiled a new stamp honouring Chloe Cooley, a young Black woman who was known to challenge her enslavement in the late 18th century.
A homicide investigation is underway on Quadra Island, B.C., after a 39-year old woman was found dead in what investigators believe was a targeted killing.
Alberta's former chief medical officer of health has landed a new role in British Columbia. Dr. Deena Hinshaw was named a deputy provincial health officer for B.C. on Wednesday.
Calgary police are looking for suspects involved in an altercation that lasted for approximately an hour, spanned several communities and ended with a gun being fired.
Tsuut'ina Nation Police Service officials are encouraging any local victims to come forward following the arrest of actor Nathan Lee Chasing Horse in Las Vegas on sex assault charges.
Alberta's former chief medical officer of health has landed a new role in British Columbia. Dr. Deena Hinshaw was named a deputy provincial health officer for B.C. on Wednesday.
A Quebec woman said she was very surprised to find her stolen Audi had been used in what’s being described as an “absolutely insane” Ontario mall robbery.
Hundreds of tenants at a midtown Toronto apartment building have been without heat for a week now, and many are worried with the arrival of bitter-cold temperatures.
Canada's new special representative on combating Islamophobia has apologized for words that hurt Quebecers after leaders in that province called for her resignation.
Montreal police say two men are in hospital Wednesday night with stab wounds after an altercation in a home in the city's Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve borough.
The organization regulating medical care and services in Manitoba is apologizing for racism directed towards Indigenous people when accessing health care in the province.
Connor Bedard has arrived in Calgary ahead of what's expected to be a completely full Scotiabank Saddledome when the Calgary Hitmen and Regina Pats square off.
The Saskatchewan Environmental Society (SES) is drawing their line in the sand on the controversial Saskatchewan First Act, calling it “bad news” for the environment, economy, and the province’s energy future.
A new 911 dispatch system in New Brunswick means that now fire departments aren’t getting dispatched to all medical calls leaving residents waiting and first responders in the dark.
More than four months after Hurricane Fiona hit Atlantic Canada, people are still dealing with damaged homes as they wait for help from insurance companies and provincial aid programs.
Gillian Burnett was almost finished her work day on Jan. 24 when she received a terrifying call about her young son. Waylon, 20-months-old, was found submerged in an outdoor pool at a home daycare near Petrolia, Ont.
Tsuut'ina Nation Police Service officials are encouraging any local victims to come forward following the arrest of actor Nathan Lee Chasing Horse in Las Vegas on sex assault charges.
A hearing is underway to determine if Udo Haan is not criminally responsible for the death of his wife Edra Haan, who was found in the aftermath of the 2018 house explosion in Kitchener, Ont.
Chief Mark Crowell made a presentation at a council meeting Wednesday justifying the proposed $214 million budget for the Waterloo Regional Police Service (WRPS).
This photo submitted by Diedra, a B.C. dog owner, shows the two pups she says were poisoned in December of 2022.
A dog owner in B.C. says these trays of meat, that were doused in a liquid she believes was anti-freeze, were left in her backyard. Photo submitted to CTV News. 
