Irish setter was NOT poisoned at Crufts, investigation reveals

The owners of tragic pet Jagger had claimed the three-year-old canine was fed poisoned chunks of meat during the competition at the NEC in Birmingham earlier this month.

However the Kennel Club, who run Crufts, have now claimed that a probe into Jagger's death found fast-acting poison in the dog's stomach - meaning he must have eaten the contaminated meat back in his native Belgium rather than in the UK.

A veterinary expert has also backed up the claims, saying Jagger would have died within three hours of eating the poisoned meat.

Caroline Kisko, from the Kennel Club, said: "There has been a lot of concern about whether the poisoning happened at Crufts and we are now able to reassure all dog lovers who came to Crufts that this could not have been possible and it is highly likely that the poisons, thought to be on a piece of beef, were eaten in Belgium, shortly before Jagger’s death.

“We have had confirmation, including from independent toxicologists, that the poisons identified in the toxicology report – carbofuran and aldicarb – are fast acting. Severe clinical symptoms would usually occur within half an hour to three hours.

“Considering we are told that Jagger showed the first clinical signs usually associated with these two poisons shortly before his death in Belgium, late on Friday 6 March night, leading to the immediate call for veterinary attention, we must conclude that it is inconceivable that he could have been poisoned at Crufts on Thursday 5 March, some 28 to 36 hours earlier.

“Furthermore, the poison is thought to have been given on a piece of beef that was still largely undigested when the autopsy was performed on Saturday 7 March morning, and food is usually absorbed in dogs within six hours."

Ms Kisko also dismissed reports that a number of other dogs had been poisoned since appearing at Crufts.

Officials had previously said they were aware of rumours several other dogs, including a shih-tzu West Highland white terrier and an Afghan hound, had also fallen ill after this year's show.

Ms Kisko added: "We must stress that despite reports to the contrary which have caused a lot of concern to dog lovers, absolutely no dog has been shown to have been sick at or after Crufts due to poison ingested at the show, there are no veterinary reports or evidence to support this notion, and no official reports of poisoning have been made to the police.

“We have a lot of security measures in place to protect the dogs at our show and we continually review our procedures because the welfare and safety of the dogs is our first and main priority.

“Regardless of the fact that the poison was not ingested at Crufts a dog has very sadly died and we must now respect the owners' privacy and give them time to grieve.”

Nick Edwards, Senior Information Scientist for the Veterinary Poisons Information Service, said: "We understand that the toxicology report says carbofuran and aldicarb, toxic carbamate pesticides - which are no longer approved for use in the EU - were found.

"We would expect the clinical effects, if ingested by a dog, to be rapid in onset; normally between half an hour and three hours.

The owners of Jagger - also known as Thendara Satisfaction and whom ranked second in his class at Crufts - spoke of their devastation after their pet died after competing at the show. 

The Irish setter was estimated to be worth in excess of £50,000.

Alexandra Lauwers, from Belgium, described Jagger as "our love, family member and best friend to our son".

On her Facebook page she posted: "To person who has done it, hope you can sleep well knowing you have killed our love, family member and best friend to our son."

Jagger's co-owner Dee Milligan-Bott described the act as a "heinous crime".

Her daughter described the hound as "priceless" to his family.