Devastated dog owner calls for more awareness of 1080 drops
A devastated man whose dogs are believed to have died from 1080 poisoning wants more awareness of impending aerial drops.
The man, who does not want to be identified due to the emotive responses to 1080 cases, posted on Facebook about the deaths under the name Staffy Love.
He wrote “with a very heavy, shattered and broken heart” that he wanted other dog owners to be aware of the recent Department of Conservation (DOC) 1080 drop in and around Glenorchy, Dart River and the Rees River.
No words could describe the helplessness he felt when his pets were taken by a poison, which had no antidote, he said.
1080 is a controversial bait dropped in national parks to kill predators such as rats, stoats and possums, which threaten vulnerable species and native birds.
Speaking with Stuff later, he said he was not a supporter of 1080, but he did not want to argue over its merits and use.
If anything positive was to come from the deaths of Ryker, 6, and her daughter Kyrah, 2, it would be better awareness of 1080 use so that other families could avoid a similar situation, he said.
He was at the Dart River, in Mt Aspiring National Park, with his three dogs – Ryker, Kyrah, and Kyrah’s father Jakahn, 5 – when the incident occurred on March 9, he said.
“I wasn’t aware that area was not open to dogs, and I didn’t know about the 1080 drop,” he said.
The dogs went for a run, with the two girls chasing rabbits up the river and returning with nothing in their mouths.
However, within two hours Ryker and Kyrah began to show signs of 1080 poisoning, and although the man carried charcoal pills and other medications to induce vomiting, he was unable to help them.
He drove to find an area with mobile phone coverage, but was distracted while crossing a ford and smashed his gearbox on a rock, destroying it.
“If anyone is to blame, it’s myself, not being more vigilant, not being more aware, but that’s painful in itself,” he said.
“I just want to do anything now that will make others more aware.”
He took the dogs to a vet in Queenstown, who confirmed that the most likely cause of death was 1080 poisoning.
Since making the post on Facebook, he had been approached by a DOC representative who offered to pay for post-mortems, but he declined because it was too emotional.
He said he would prefer to see the department put effort into more information, including larger signs.
DOC Whakatipu operations manager David Butt said he was working with the dog owner, and the department’s thoughts were with him.
The predator control operation took place in Mt Aspiring National Park and the Caples and Lower Dart Conservation areas, and there were clear signs at every entry point to the area warning people of the risks, Butt said. There were also alerts on the website, and publicity in local papers, he said.
The dog owner, a builder who mostly lives in his van, said he did not see any publicity.
“I don’t watch TV. I don’t sit on my phone 24/7, and I don’t read newspapers. There needs to be more ways of making people aware,” he said.
He said he had missed the signs. When his friend returned later to look at the signs, he found they were between the size of an A3 and A4 piece of paper. They were not obvious, and could easily be missed due to the dust cloud on the gravel roads, he said.
There was also an access gate that could have been closed, he said.
Another notification method would be for councils to email registered dog owners when a 1080 drop was due to happen, he said. However, a Queenstown Lakes District Council spokesman said this was not legally possible, as the council was only permitted to collect personal information for dog registration purposes.