An Edmonds man was convicted Sept. 2 of a felony animal cruelty charge for poisoning a neighbor’s dog.
Donald Kempton Fraser, 56, admitted that he set out bowls of anti-freeze in his back yard because he was tired of animals defecating on his lawn.
He testified that he never meant to kill any animals and believed that the smell of the anti-freeze would keep the dogs away.
Judge Richard Thorpe rejected that argument, saying Fraser knew the anti-freeze could hurt neighborhood dogs.
A golden retriever named Cabor was euthanized in November after he got out of his yard and was fatally poisoned by drinking the anti-freeze, causing kidney failure.
The dog’s owners, Angus Fraser and Janice Peterson, went looking for the source of the anti-freeze and learned from their neighbors that Fraser had threatened to put out bowls of anti-freeze if people didn’t keep their pets off his lawn.
Angus Fraser, no relation to Donald Fraser, discovered one bowl full of anti-freeze in Donald Fraser’s yard several days after his dog died. He videotaped it and took a sample of the poison.
“It’s just unbelievable that somebody would think it’s within their rights to put anti-freeze in their yard. That’s not how you deal with a problem animal,” Peterson said.
Veterinarian Denny Koontz, who treated Cabor, testified that animals who are poisoned by anti-freeze experience extreme pain and suffering before dying.
Animals are attracted to anti-freeze because of its sweet taste, she said, but even a small amount is usually fatal.
Cabor was a 9-year-old purebred golden retriever. The family described him as a gentle, friendly dog “that was very much a part of our family,” Peterson said.
Fraser faces up to a year in jail. His sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 28.
Katherine Schiffner is a reporter for The Herald in Everett.
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