TUCSON, Ariz. (KOLD/Gray News) – Several wild animals and family dogs are dead in what is likely a poisoning in Arizona, according to wildlife officials.
The Arizona Game and Fish Department issued a warning to pet owners about the deaths Tuesday.
The department said officers found 14 coyotes, three javelinas and a raven dead this past weekend in the Tucson area.
They were found in the Pantano Wash, which is located east of Houghton and west of Old Spanish Trail.
“I suspect the poison is either strychnine or another fast-acting poison based on the appearance of the stomach contents,” said Dr. Anne Justice-Allen, the department’s wildlife veterinarian.
Fritz Neuhauser is a dog owner who also lost his pet to the poison. He said his dog, named Luigi, went missing while out on a walk late last week and a few days before the wild animals were found. Neuhauser said he was with his neighbor at the time, whose dogs also went missing.
“We really got upset and were really looking. It was probably 30, 40 minutes into it when my friend got a phone call, and another dog walker had found his dog dead on the trail,” Neuhauser said.
Neuhauser said he became worried for Luigi at this point and tried to find him using an air tag. He received a ping, but was unable to find him.
Unfortunately, he did not get another ping until Sunday afternoon.
“I got another ping. Only the second ping in four days,” he said. “Somebody had walked near enough to my dog. I saw it on the satellite and came down and I found my dog.”
Neuhauser said it started when he found a few animals dead on his property, just before Luigi went missing on Jan. 21.
He said he contacted Arizona Game and Fish. Together, they found more than a dozen other animals dead from poisoning.
Based on a necropsy on one of the javelinas, wildlife officials determined the poison was likely placed in food to attract wildlife and dogs. While officers have not found bait sites, they are continuing to investigate and testing is ongoing.
“This is a popular area for residents to hike with their dogs,” the department said in a release. “Dog owners are advised to keep their pets on a leash, and keep them from picking up anything on the trail or in the wash.”
Some of the signs of poisoning include salivation, seizures and collapsing.
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