Safety Harbor, Florida - It was a day out on the town in Safety Harbor for William Aitken, Stacey Fielder, and their two dogs. But they say while they were eating their meal at the dog-friendly Whistle Stop Bar and Grill, one of their pooches was chowing down on something, too.
"It was caked in the back of her teeth, after I had pulled chunks of it out," says Aitken.
The couple says their 13-month-old Catahoula Cur named Shade had found a cube of rat poison at the restaurant.
"We rushed her to two hospitals and $500 later, we got her stomach cleaned out," says Aitken.
When we stopped by the restaurant on Wednesday, they didn't want to tell us anything, but the owner did give us a statement:
We at the Whistle Stop hope that the dog is doing well.
The rules for dogs are clearly stated according to the City of Safety Harbor Ordinance.
The dog in question was not on a leash or under the control of the dog owner as required.
The owner of the dog used threats and gave differing accounts as to what happened so I refuse to discuss the matter any further.
We do not wish to be on camera or interviewed.
Patrick Pendola
As for William and Stacey, they admit Shade was not on a leash, but that doesn't give any restaurant the right to have something so poisonous and possibly in harm's way.
"A child could've found this cube," says Aitken.
The restaurant acknowledged that they do have rat poison on the property. The dog's owner thinks a cube of it must have fallen out of the box they keep it in.
