Welcome to Pennsylvania, Part Two

My dog was poisoned on Friday. He died Friday night. He is not the first dog to die in this neighborhood this summer so no one believes that these are targeted killings. Rather the suspicion is that someone is putting out poison for other critters who then excrete the poison or die in someone's yard to be eaten by other animals. My husband and I had observed multiple dead animals on the roads on our daily walk, from birds to squirrels and snakes who did not seem to have any qualifying injuries. We had talked to the neighbors but thought that our animals were safe since we didn't have electronic collars on them nor did we have doggy doors and so monitored their outside visits. But somehow this past Friday, in the early dawn Watson ingested poison. Neither of us know how Watson ate poison. But he did, and he died. He was only seven or eight years old. We don't know for sure because he was a rescued dog from the Park City animal rescue.

Everybody loved Watson and Watson loved everybody. He was a gentle soul discarded by his first owner because he wouldn't hunt. His best friend was not our other dog but our Maine coon cat. There is surely a special place in hell for the person who puts out poison in a neighborhood full of animals and children. Rest in peace, Watson.