Dog owner warns others after pet ingests meth, pot and Ritalin at the beach

SAN DIEGO, Calif. (KGTV) – A dog owner in California is warning other pet owners to be careful at the beach after her dog ingested drugs and became very sick.

The Dog Beach at Ocean Beach in San Diego is a staple in the community. The Dog Beach is one of the first official leash-free beaches in the United States, where dogs can run free and swim in the water.

But Kelly Wiehe’s trip to the Dog Beach with her dog Lily ended at the emergency vet last week.

While the 4-year-old dog was running around, she quickly ate something. Wiehe assumed it was leftover bits and pieces of a picnic, but an hour later, Lily’s behavior changed.

“She was avoiding me and avoiding being touched, and her pupils were dilating, and she wouldn’t go outside, and she wouldn’t eat. She wasn’t interested in drinking any water,” Wiehe said.

After several urine drug screenings at the emergency vet, Wiehe said Lily tested positive for methamphetamine, marijuana and Ritalin.

“I didn’t know if I should laugh or cry or pass out, because I was expecting, you know, maybe she’d eaten something spoiled … I really was not expecting something to this level,” Wiehe said.

Other dog owners at the beach were shocked to hear about what happened to Lily.

“Who would leave meth on the beach knowing all these dogs are out here?” one man said.

But this isn’t the first time something like this has happened. Wiehe said the vet told her there have been multiple cases of dogs ingesting meth at the Dog Beach.

Although she was sick for a few days, fortunately, Lily made a full recovery and is back to her normal self.

“I love this dog to bits and pieces,” Wiehe said. “... Just realizing how temporary our relationships with our animals really are.”

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