Detectives are investigating fears that a beloved puppy may have been poisoned in a deliberate act to silence its barking.
Hana Hausmeister and Adam Hill were slapped with a £200 emergency vets bill to save eight-month-old Lotte after she ate a chocolate filled with rat poison and, almost a week on, remain frightened of a repeat attack.
After returning from an evening out on Saturday night, the couple let the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, who has since made a full recovery, into their Nelson Close garden, where she began rooting around in the grass.
Worried she was up to no good, 28-year-old Mr Hill prised open her mouth to find what looked like a small chocolate ball - but, on closer inspection, alarm bells began to ring.
Miss Hausmeister, 27, said: 'We noticed there was a small hole and could see blue inside it. We took it into the kitchen and these blue pellets which looked just like barley seeds fell out.'
Lotte was rushed to an out-of-hours vet, who confirmed that she had ingested rat poison - and that it may have been a deliberate attack.
'She said she had never seen rat poison used in that way before,' Miss Hausmeister said. 'The RSPCA also told us it sounded as though it was malicious. People keep asking us whether we have enemies but if we were targeted we have no idea why.'
Their only theory is that someone living nearby had become frustrated with Lotte's barking and taken a drastic measure.
'She is a puppy so it is high-pitched and quite annoying, but it's really quite rare,' she said. 'We don't leave her outside so she is only barking for a minute or two. It's no excuse regardless, but it does seem like a silly reason.'
Both of their neighbours are dog owners and one side has children, which the couple said was 'terrifying'.
'It doesn't even bear thinking about,' Miss Hausmeister said. 'I don't want to have someone like that living in my area, it's terrifying to be honest.'
Lotte was poisoned on Saturday, February 6 at about 1am. It is thought the chocolates were thrown into the garden from a public footpath behind.
If you have information, contact police on 101.
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