24/10/2024
It’s not just what it does to your pets but the torture dingoes would endure too
Absolutely disgusting practice
Just like the insane chemicals they are dropping all over tweed shire for fire ants going into our water ways and killing our native species
Where are THE GREENS when you need them???
In Loving Memory of Luci & Walter 🐾💔
Today, we honour the memory of Luci and Walter, two cherished family members whose lives were tragically and abruptly ended by 1080 poison. Their harrowing experience serves as a heartbreaking reminder of the devastating and indiscriminate nature of this cruel toxin.
Their guardian shares their painful experience:
“Who would have thought we would lose two beloved pets in such horrendous circumstances? Our beautiful girl Luci was an outback dog, so we were well aware of the risks posed by snakes and crocodiles. We always looked for signage warning of baiting, but at this particular work site, there was no warning of what was to come.
Luci never wandered far, so I know the bait was in an area frequented by workers and road crews. Growing up as city slickers before choosing rural life meant we were naive about how these baits work. She must have found it, eaten it, and then returned ready for the two-hour trip home.
During the journey, she began to look sick, but in the hot climate, my husband thought she'd just overheated a bit. Upon arrival, she burst out of the open car window and vomited at the gate. Little did I know she had also vomited around the backyard.
Walter, only 18 weeks old, loved Luci and always ran to play when they got home. I let him out, not knowing how deadly that one decision would be. Luci looked unwell, so we cooled her down. I noticed Walter eating something on the grass, and within 15 minutes, all hell broke loose.
Luci started screaming and running in circles before collapsing and fitting. Her eyes pleaded with us for help. With no vets in town and the closest one a 4-hour drive away (already closed for the weekend), we knew she was dying. All we could do was watch. You can't comfort them, you can't help them, and you can't save them – they are dead from the moment they ingest this horrible poison. I hysterically called a friend who came and put our baby out of pain for us. The trauma of this experience will stay with us forever.
If that wasn't enough, within two hours, our baby boy Walter suffered the same fate. We tried to make him vomit after Luci passed, then prayed the vomit wasn't deadly, hoping somehow the stomach acids would break it down. How wrong we were.
I will never forget Walter's screaming as he took off into the fence, then squeezed under the house. When we finally reached him, the terror in his eyes as his little body convulsed is something I will relive in my mind forever. With no one around to help, we had to help Walter pass to stop the pain. No one should ever have to put a pet out of misery themselves – it's something I don't think we'll ever recover from.
After wrapping their little bodies for cremation, we realised we hadn't protected ourselves from this incredibly toxic chemical. While trying to help them, we had been in contact with bodily fluids, unaware of how it might affect us. Thankfully, we were only emotionally, not physically, scarred, but have since learned it is very toxic to humans as well.
As heartbreaking as it is to write this story, with tears flowing with every word, if it saves even one family from the horror we've just been through, then at least their deaths were not totally in vain.
Please, if you have been in the bush with your dog and they look sick in any way, isolate them from all other pets just to be safe. I would never have thought one instance of vomiting could cause so much pain”.
Luci and Walter's tragic fate isn't just heartbreaking - it's a deafening alarm bell. Every day, countless animals across Australia are at risk of suffering the same fate.
🚫 Will you stand with us against the use of 1080 poison today? Our petition has already gathered over 23,000 signatures!
Take action now:
https://ban1080.org.au/petition/apvma-review
