Please be aware: Do not let your dog drink water at Conroy or Bruce Pit.

UPDATE on Tuesday November 16th at 4:30pm

I received the following from the NCC

On behalf of everyone at the NCC, our heart goes out to those who have lost a dog or whose pets were ill.

At the NCC, we find reports of such occurrences very disturbing. We take them seriously and investigate them.

Immediately after hearing the news yesterday (November 15), an NCC Conservation Officer was on site to assess the situation. She spoke to dog owners and walked the grounds. She did not have anything abnormal to report.

We are currently investigating this situation. Another NCC Conservation Officer met with the dog owner whose dog passed away this morning (November 16). They walked the grounds, at Conroy Pit, together and the Conservation Officer had nothing abnormal to report.

At this point, we have not been able to establish a link between visits to Conroy Pit and this unfortunate situation.

We have contacted the Responsible Dog Owners of Canada to help reach out to dog owners. They can be reached through their website at http://www.responsibledogowners.ca

We ask that the dog owners remain prudent and report any abnormal situations at Conroy Pit and Bruce Pit.

The NCC can be reached at info@ncc-ccn.ca or by telephone at 613-239-5000 or 1-800-465-1867 (toll-free).

We will continue to monitor the situation and ask the public’s cooperation in this matter.

Regards,

Jean Wolff
NCC – Communications

There has been no evidence of antifreeze and that it’s linked to the dogs’ deaths.
My heart goes out to the families of these pups.

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Growling is one of the most misunderstood expressions in canines. Growling or snarling is not evil and it doesn’t necessarily always mean a dog is unfriendly. It’s a warning. Often growling may occur when a dog is in pain, playing, frightened, annoyed, or if it’s telling you “what you’re doing is really freaking me out. Please stop…or else.”

A dog that growls is actually a good thing. In fact you are more at risk with a dog that doesn’t growl than one who does. Growling is part of a dog’s communication. Growling is a signal that is used to say “back off” without injuring other pack members. Dogs use their communication system with all species even humans. The growl belongs near the top of a sequence in a group of signals called “Distance Increasing Signals”.

When dogs use “distance increasing signals” they are in fact telling you to “Go Away”.

Growling is a warning; it’s a warning that something is not right and must not be punished in anyway, otherwise the problem remains but the dog learns you dislike its growling, so bites instead. The problem of why the dog is growling is what must be addressed, so that problem can be removed and the dog no longer needs to growl or act aggressively.

When you punish a growl or other early warning signal, you may succeed in suppressing the growl, snarl, snap or other warning behaviour— but you don’t take away the stress that caused the growl in the first place. In fact you are increasing it, because now you, the dog’s guardian have become unpredictable, possibly angry as well. (Think Dog and not human).

Worst of all, and most significant, is if you succeed in suppressing the warning signals, you end up with a dog that bites without warning. The dog has learned that it’s not safe to warn, so it doesn’t.

You should not punish your puppy or dog for growling at you or at anyone else. Dogs that are chastised for their growling very often will show more serious behaviours later on.

Don’t be confused in these situations and do not take dog growls more personally than you should. Identify the cause and fix that, but don’t take away the dog’s communication.

Everyone expects a lion to roar, knows to stay clear of bears and not to play with snakes. We don’t call those animals evil or mean because they roar, chase or hiss at us.

To put growling into perspective let’s take a moment to review some of the ways in which humans express these emotions. We complain, yell at people, scream at other drivers on the road, argue, throw things, break things, slam doors, stomp up or down the stairs, make idle threats, punch walls, talk nasty about certain people or tell someone to take a hike (or substitute another 4-letter word). This is quite different than me pulling out a gun to shoot you because you cut me off on the highway. Being angry and being violent are some distance from each other.

Despite the vocal and often violent ways of expressing ourselves we’re quick to call a dog vicious or dangerous if it snarls growls or even attempts to bite us. While growling is a means of communication it does make people quite uneasy. Therefore, growling and snarling should be addressed immediately by consulting with your vet to rule out a medical cause and by hiring a professional behaviourist to help your dog overcome its fears.

Pay attention to what your dog is telling you, Listen with heart and compassion, treasure its growl and come to its rescue.

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