A devastated mum has told how her family’s nine-month-old pup Harley died after drinking water from Lough Neagh on the Antrim shoreline.
The incident bears eerie similarities to the deaths of family pets Winnie and Milo, who also passed within an hour of being walked in the same area by their families last May. We understand two further dogs also perished that year.
Harley’s owner Claire Gillespie is calling on environment chiefs to investigate again after tests in 2022 found no toxins in the water.
Read more: Loughshore dog deaths cause still unknown as council lifts walkers warning
She said: “It’s not just a coincidence – there has to be something there.”
Claire told us Border Collie, Harley, “was a perfectly healthy dog who had all her vaccinations'' but on her way home from walking at Rea’s Wood where she lapped up some water, collapsed by the roadside.
The Antrim woman says her son Conor, 25, has been left “traumatised” by what happened as he took Harley out for her walk on Friday, May 19.
She added: “He came off night duty and walked her and he feels responsible but he couldn’t have known there was anything in the water. I saw the posts and then I heard the water was clear.”
Describing what happened, Claire said Harley drunk from the Loughshore around 9am on May 19 and collapsed around half an hour later.
“She went downhill quickly,” she added. “Conor told me she turned and looked at him and he thought there was something wrong with her eye but he thought she might have been stung.
“He kept walking as she was still pulling and they hit the roundabout at the bottom of the Dublin Road about 9.20am. At that point he noticed her leg starting to wobble and then she just sat down and rolled over on to her side.
“He waved, trying to stop cars and he just panicked and jumped out into the middle of the road and waved this couple down. The vet is two minutes up the road. From she collapsed to getting to the vet was less than five minutes.
“He rang me at 9.30am and I was at the vets for 9.45am and Harley had passed away by 9.50am.
“It was so quick - she didn’t have a chance. Whatever it was, it just took her.”
Claire said she has since spoken to Winnie’s owner, who shared a very similar story.
“We are all heartbroken,” she added.
“This is our first dog... you get so attached, they are just part of the family. She was such a good wee dog. She was so smart and such a loving animal.
“I want some sort of justice,” she continued.
“If there had been a signpost there Harley would not have been near that water.
“I would be happy if it was cordoned off and there were signs... saying this water could be toxic to dogs.
“He had her on the lead the whole time so she wasn’t running into the bushes or wherever. I think it’s the water.
“There were cases last year and... maybe it was a one-off - but this is a recurrence practically a year to the date and there has to be an explanation.
“These perfectly healthy dogs are not just dropping dead - there must be something there.
“I would like that she’s the last wee dog to die.”
Claire said her daughter Callie, 15, who spent hours teaching Harley tricks and her partner Ian are also heartbroken by her death.
“It’s horrific. I would like Harley’s death not to be in vain,” she added.
A petition has been launched calling for DAERA to investigate.
DAERA has been contacted for comment.
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