On Tuesday morning, more glass was found at the Volker Park off-leash dog area.
It was shocking to Geoff Mallory, the municipal parks and open spaces manager, given the amount of attention the issue has received over the weekend and Monday.
The fact that someone was dumping glass at the dog park was first reported Friday, and again across the region on the weekend.
“We’re trying to create awareness out there, so people are vigilant,” said Mallory.
So it seemed especially brazen, given the call for heightened awareness, that on Tuesday morning there was more broken glass dumped on the ground at the entrances to both the large and small dog areas, and more near the water tap.
“After the coverage this has had, I was very surprised,” said Mallory.
The popular dog park is located at 21113 – 123rd Ave., and has a number of regulars who meet at the park to socialize while their pets gambol. They explained they have been picking up glass there on a regular basis.
On May 8, Mallory saw the first bag of glass that a park user reported having picked up. Since that time, there have been 10 more reports of glass spread on the ground at the park, including Tuesday morning.
So far, no pets have been reported cut or injured by the glass, which is tempered like that used for automobiles, and is less sharp than residential window glass.
Last Thursday morning, though, a park user left a note advising other pet owners that her dog had eaten suspected poisoned pet kibbles left on the ground, and the animal became very ill. The person has not yet responded to calls.
Mallory said the parks department has reached out to Volker Park neighbours, asking them to report anything suspicious. The RCMP is aware of the situation, as is the SPCA, whose investigators can lay charges related to animal cruelty.
There have been no reports of glass spread at other off-leash dog parks in Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows.
Maple Ridge SPCA manager Jennifer York said the perpetrator at Volker could face criminal charges, and she wants to see the person caught.
“It’s absolutely terrible that people would do anything like this, to deliberately harm dogs – especially in a designated dog park,” York said.
“What we need is the public help – if you see anything suspicious, we need to hear about it.”
