BETHANY, Ore. (KOIN) – John and Shannon Motter said they couldn’t imagine life without their dogs Gracie and Barry.
“We got both when they were little,” said Shannon Motter. Gracie is “a Pomeranian Chihuahua mix. (Barry) is a Pomeranian Shih-Tzu mixture. “
On Monday night, Barry hopped onto her couch with a hamburger in his mouth. But the burger was coated with green pellets. John Motter was immediately concerned and then startled when he researched what the pellets might be: rat poison.
The Motters found that rat poison prevented dogs from clotting, causing them to bleed internally.
They quickly took the dogs to the vet, where they were given medication to stop the effects of any poison they might have ingested.
John Motter also found a second burger in his garden. He believes it came over his neighbor’s fence. A Washington County MP came out and walked through the property, he said.
The property has been cleared. But then, on Tuesday night, a third, apparently poisonous, flatbread was left in his garden while he was installing security cameras.
Her neighbor Erik Mighells was arrested on Wednesday. The 57-year-old is facing charges of first-degree animal cruelty. He is being held in the Washington County Jail.
Now the motters Gracie and Barry can only watch and wait for their tests and blood values.
“You’re already taking the medication,” Shannon said. “But we don’t know. They couldn’t do it. “
The Motters said that sometimes the drugs don’t work and for the next few days they don’t know if their dogs are out of the woods.
“It’s a terrible death,” said John Motter. “And it’s a long and painful death.”
He said his neighborhood is on alert and concerned about other pets and animals in the community. He advises his neighbors to search their gardens for anything that looks similar to what they found in theirs.
