'I'm infuriated:' Durham petowner in shock after rat poison in yard kills puppy

DURHAM, N.C. (WTVD) -- Jaime Sigmon said her nightmare began last Monday night.

Her 18-week-old puppy, Kona, seemed lethargic. On Tuesday she became so sick, Jaime rushed the ordinarily "happy-go-lucky" pup to the vet. To Sigmon's shock, her dog died.

"I am completely overwhelmed," she said.

Sigmon said the dog hadn't been able to breathe or walk.

"I cried so hard that my eyes were swollen shut. She was just a puppy, and a very joyful and loving one at that," Sigmon wrote on a Facebook post.

Another one of Sigmon's dogs became sick about the same time.

Confused and curious as to why both her pets were getting ill, Sigmon went searching in her yard and said she found hundreds of green pellets that people used to poison rats.

"Someone had thrown the rat poison into my yard to kill my innocent dogs," she posted. "It's a crazy thing to think someone is so hateful."

Sigmon's other dog is doing OK after treatment, but on Monday, Kona was sent to the Rollins Lab in Raleigh for a necropsy.

Sigmon said Animal Control is investigating, and she is trying to warn other pet owners to be careful allowing their dogs to roam in the yard where there could be deadly dangers.

"I have so many emotions right now. I'm heartbroken. I'm infuriated. I'm horrified. I'm mentally and emotionally drained," she said on Facebook.

ABC11 reached out to the Durham Sheriff's Office to see whether investigators are looking into the claims:

"On May 16, Ms. Jamie Sigmon, who lives on Spacious Skies Lane, called to report one of her pets had died and another was sick. According to information provided by her veterinarian, Ms. Sigmon believed both pets had ingested a toxic substance in her private yard that had been put there by an unknown person and that it was this same substance causing the animals to become ill. Two days later on May 18, another resident in the same area reported seeing what is believed to be the same substance scattered in the backyard of the residence. Both incidents remain under investigation. If anyone has information about this case, please contact the Durham County Sheriff's office Animal Services Division at 919-560-0630."