Neasden dog owners suspect their pets have been poisoned in a local park.
Andrew William-Coleman's therapy dog Bessie suddenly became unwell after returning from a walk in Neasden Recreational Ground last Tuesday (February 8).
When she began vomiting and had blood-laced diarrhoea, Andrew rushed Bessie to an emergency clinic where the vet confirmed she was demonstrating "signs of toxicity".
Andrew, who is disabled, told this paper: "I was completely terrified of losing her.
"I was just crying my eyes out, it was horrific.
"Luckily she's a big dog so the poison took time to go through her, meaning the vets could save her.
"We were very, very lucky."
On the instruction of the vet, the next day Andrew and husband Gustavo retraced their walk from the night before.
The couple said they found "thousands" of rat pellets littered around the park and its entrances.
"I was shocked, who would do that?," he said. "I was really distraught - what if she'd eaten more?"
Worryingly, Andrew believes Bessie is the seventh dog poisoned in the Brent park, based on conversations with neighbours.
Dominika Szczepanska, who also uses the recreation grounds, had a similar experience with her dog Melman.
On September 20 last year, the Maltese began vomiting and had diarrhoea after a walk.
A vet gave him an anti-nausea injection, but he still did not get better.
Dominika said: "When I took him for a walk, it was like he was looking for a bush to go into and die.
"He's normally such a happy and cuddly dog, but he didn't want to go near people or be touched.
"The next day he couldn't move or stand up, and when I picked him up it was like holding a puppet."
The worried owner took him to a clinic, where she was told he only had a 20 - 30 per cent chance of survival.
However, Dominika refused to have him put down and asked the vets to do everything they could to save him.
"He's not a toy to throw away when it breaks," she said.
Thankfully, Melman survived and came home six days later, but his illness left Dominika £5,500 out of pocket.
She said the vets suspected the dog was poisoned as they could not identify any viruses or parasites in his blood.
Has your dog become ill after walking in Neasden Recreation Ground? Email sally.patterson@archant.co.uk with your story.
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