Poisoning 'most likely cause' of dog deaths linked to Parry Avenue field

SINGAPORE: Poisoning was “most likely” behind the sudden deaths of two dogs hours after playing in a field in the Kovan area, the Animal & Veterinary Service (AVS) and Singapore Land Authority (SLA) said on Saturday (Nov 11).

But testing of samples taken from the Parry Avenue field – a regular spot for dog owners – found no substance that could have killed a cavachon on Oct 5 and a bernedoodle the next day.

The two pets developed similar symptoms soon after their visits to the field, including vomiting and seizures.

Their deaths sparked alarm among a community of dog lovers who put up signs warning people not to bring their pets to the field.

In a statement, AVS and SLA said they started investigations after being alerted to the matter on Oct 7.

As the dogs who died after visiting the field were cremated before then, there were “no available samples for laboratory analyses to establish the cause of illness and demise”.

But “based on available clinical information of the two dogs, poisoning was the most likely cause of demise”, said the authorities.

The affected dog owners and attending veterinarians were interviewed to gather the relevant information, and the Parry Avenue field was cordoned off while investigations were ongoing.

An advisory was also issued to all licensed veterinarians in Singapore and dog owners living in the vicinity were asked to report any similar cases.  

“To date, no similar cases have been reported in the vicinity or other parts of Singapore,” said AVS and SLA.

Environmental samples from the field and its surrounding areas were tested by the National Environment Agency (NEA).

This did not uncover any poison or toxic substance that could have caused the dogs’ deaths, said the agencies.

When contacted by CNA, AVS and SLA said over 100 samples had been collected.

In their statement, they added that there were also no vector control treatments conducted recently at the field. Vector control includes chemical-based tools such as insecticide.

“As there is no evidence of contamination at the field, and no other related cases reported, SLA will reopen the site for public access on Nov 12, 2023,” said the two agencies.

Related:

Vomiting, seizures: Dog owners seek answers on pets’ deaths after visits to Parry Avenue field

Meanwhile, the death of a third dog on Oct 5 was likely to be unrelated to the other two cases, said AVS and SLA.

The dog, which CNA understands to be a husky, had walked in the area but did not enter the field at Parry Avenue. 

In a post-mortem examination of its body, which included the analysis of samples for potential toxins, no evidence was found to suggest that the dog had been poisoned. 

The dog’s symptoms were also different, as it was not reported to have seizures.