Dog hospitalized after ingesting drugs

A Vancouver dog is being treated after eating what is believed to be drugs it found on the beach.

Jean-Francois Houde’s dog, Loretta, started acting strangely after a visit to Kits Beach on Wednesday.

“We realized she was really not able to stand at all. She was walking like she was drunk,” Houde told CTV News. “She became kind of paranoid.”

Loretta was taken to the Burrard Animal Hospital, where vets said the threeyear-old dog might have ingested PCP, also known as angel dust. She spent Thursday hooked up to an intravenous line.

Animal care professionals say incidents of this sort are not uncommon.

A worker at Burrard Animal Hospital, who asked not to be named, said a dog is treated for the effects of drugs “at least once a day.”

In the summer, another Vancouver dog nearly died after ingesting drugs during a day trip to Third Beach in Stanley Park. The incident took place the day after the opening night of the Celebration of Light fireworks festival.

Dogs love trips, but not this kind. Dog owners are encouraged to be vigilant with their animals.

“Watch them,” said the animal hospital employee. “Because, honestly, it can be in any of the sand, any of the grass. If your dog starts acting lethargic or seems stoned, then bring them in. There’s no way of preventing it. How do you find powder in sand?”