A DEVASTATED pet owner wants to warn others after her beloved dog died after apparently being poisoned.

Jackie Denning from Cowley Hill was horrified after her 13-year-old Japanese Akita, Boris died three hours after she walked him at Victoria Park on Friday, August 4.

She was told by the vet that slug pellets or antifreeze – possibly dumped in the park – must have caused the poisoning which made Boris lose use of his legs within half an hour.

Mum-of-two Jackie, 52 said: “We as a family a just devastated over Boris’ death. We saw him suffer for three hours while we tried to find an out-of-hours vet.

“He suffered a terrible end and we had to witness it. I wouldn’t want any other dog to go through that he did.

“I just want people to know of the danger because Boris didn’t eat anything in the park so he must have got it on his muzzle and paws and licked them clean like most dogs do.

“The only reason we even managed to get him to a vet is because he collapsed and we wrapped him in a blanket.

“I only took him to the park at 5.30pm after work and by 9pm he was gone and the vet told me himself that it was down to poisoning from slug pellets or antifreeze.

“I urge people to clean their dog’s muzzles and paws once they get in from a walk and make sure they don’t eat things while out so that other innocent animals are not subjected to this horrendous treatment."

Dave Leicester, head of clinical intelligence at Vets Now who was the out-of-hour veterinarians caring for Boris on behalf of Rutland Vets, said: "After looking closely at the case we have decided that it is likely that Boris ingested slug pellets as slugs and snails are most active during warm humid spells and that is when most slug pellet poisonings will happen.

"The active ingredient in most forms of slug pellets, metaldehyde, is highly toxic to both dogs and cats, and even very small amounts, if ingested, can lead to fatal clinical signs which progress very rapidly.

"If an owner thinks their pet has eaten any amount of slug pellets, no matter how small, they should contact their veterinary practice without delay, as clinical signs can start in as little as 30 minutes.

"Owners should be alert to the early signs such as nausea, drooling, wobbliness and lack of coordination, which can progress rapidly to tremors and seizures and I recommend all pet owners to thoroughly wipe down their pets paws and muzzles after a walk."

A spokesman for St Helens Council, which cares for the park, added: "We are saddened to hear of this tragic death, but assure residents that the council does not use slug pellets in any of the borough’s parks and green spaces.

"A search of the park will be carried out for evidence of pellets, and any found will be removed.”