Chilliwack Progress
Wild dogs on the loose at Cultus

Email Print Letter to Editor Share
Text By Jennifer Feinberg - Chilliwack Progress

Published: April 27, 2009 4:00 PM
Updated: April 27, 2009 4:38 PM

Cultus Lake area residents want action taken on the roving packs of wild dogs roaming their community attacking and killing pets.

“This has gone on for a few years now, but now the situation is worse than ever,” said resident Keray Whorly. “It seems everyone’s hands are tied.”

Part of the problem is the adjoining jurisdictions of the Cultus Lake Park Board, Fraser Valley Regional District and Soowahlie First Nation.

Whorly told the Progress yesterday that he’s had to defend himself against the “renegade” dogs on a couple of occasions, once striking the lead dog with a wooden 2x4, and another time threatening one of them with a walking stick.

It was a couple of weeks ago just before dawn, when he spotted one of the dogs near his steps before he managed to scare them off.

“They’re all jet black, part lab and something else. You can’t tell them apart,” he said. He’s seen as many as nine animals cruising through back alleys looking for prey, with some shepherds joining the pack recently.

A meeting of the Cultus Lake Residents’ Association was held Sunday in the lakeside community to discuss the issue.

The one bright spot in the situation for area resident Barry Cornfield is that Cultus Lake Park Board chair Brian Nokleby is acutely aware of the problem and actively trying to solve it, he said.

“I’m very happy he’s been digging into this,” he said. “But it’s not just happening here. It happens all over B.C.”

It’s been going on for months at the lake, with packs of three to eight dogs killing smaller dogs and cats, said resident Donna Hobbs.

“They surround them and literally tear them apart,” she writes in a letter to the Progress. “One occurrence actually had the dog owner walking the dog on leash when they attacked and killed the pet.”

Hobbs wants to know which agency is responsible, and wants them all working together to take action immediately.

“Will we have to wait until a toddler is maimed?” she asked. “My husband wants me to take my dog for a walk with mace and a golf club. Someone help us. Tell us what to do.”