RYE, N.H. (WHDH) - A number of dogs that recently fell ill after visiting a beach in New Hampshire all ingested some sort of caffeinated item, authorities said.
Since November, the Rye Police Department says it has received 14 reports of dogs becoming sick after walking between Wallis Road Extension and Wallis Sands State Beaches.
Many beachgoers told police that their dogs appeared to have eaten something in the sand before becoming sick. Some dog owners recovered edible, “treat-like” items on the beach, all of which were in the same general area, authorities said.
Dog owner Rebecca Schneider says she has been staying away from that beach upon this discovery.
“It terrifies me,” she said. “I grew up here and come down here just about every day with Maggie. We’ve been avoiding this beach for about a month.”
One dog that passed away, along with the mysterious items, were turned over to the New Hampshire Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory and later sent to a veterinary diagnostic laboratory in Michigan for testing.
Caffeine was said to be detected in all of the items that were submitted for testing and analysis.
“The lab results need to be evaluated further to confirm if the caffeine amounts are consistent with each item submitted for testing,” the police department said in a press release.
Rye Police Chief Kevin Walsh is asking area residents to be aware of their dog’s actions and to stay close enough to control the animal and observe behaviors.
“Your dog should always be in your sight, so if you’re walking ahead of your dog 25 yards, that’s not walking your dog, you’re not paying attention to what your dog’s doing,” he said. “So whether it’s man-made or something from nature that the dog’s eating, you should be within 10 to 20 feet of your dog and have sight of your dog to make sure they’re not eating something.”
Anyone with information is asked to call police at 603-964-5522 or send a tip to Seacoast Crime Stoppers.
An investigation is ongoing.
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