Toronto pet owners told to watch out for poisoned peanut shells left in dog parks

As if lockdown isn't hard enough for us and our badly-groomed pets right now, some evil human has apparently been dropping poisoned peanut shells in Toronto dog parks this past week.

Attn #Toronto dog owners. @TorontoPolice warning to be careful at Canoe Landing Park & Victoria Memorial Square. Peanuts allegedly laced with poison may be on the ground. Police called in after a man and woman acting suspicious & seen laying something around the parks. #doglovers pic.twitter.com/9tAa8fNhAX

— Jee-Yun Lee (@JeeYunTV) February 2, 2021

The target sites identified so far are Victoria Memorial Square near Front and Portland, and Canoe Landing Park, where a man and woman were thought to be placing "tainted" peanut shells on the ground over the weekend, police confirmed to Global News.

A PSA has been circulating across social media also cautioning those who take their dogs to Coronation Off-leash Dog Park along the waterfront at Strachan Ave.

The post alleges that the duo behind the crime have been "throwing peanut shells with rat poison because they 'hate dogs' and are 'doing god's work.'"

It also states that they spit on a pet owner who tried to confront them.

"Please keep an eye on your puppies and what they are eating, they tend to throw these peanut shells around trees," it cautions.

This sadly isn't the first time people in Toronto have had to watch out for nutjobs trying to poison animals — there was the time someone was distributing poison dog food in spring 2019, or the time poison pellets were found in Stanley Park just months prior.

Hopefully the suspects this time will be caught and punished amid the ongoing investigation.

Toronto police eventually concluded on Feb. 26 that the peanut shells being scattered were not tainted or harmful, and closed the investigation into the incidents.