A dog killer who has poisoned more than 100 pets in Hong Kong has claimed another victim, police said today.
A Labrador died on Tuesday after picking up what is believed to be meat laced with poison on a walk with its owner in the city's exclusive Mid Levels area.
The case comes two weeks after a golden retriever survived after eating meat tainted with insecticide in an area close by.
Over the last 19 years, more than 100 dogs have been killed and scores more have survived after eating bait left by the poisoner, who is believed to be an elderly Chinese man once seen leaving meat on the ground.
His most famous victim was the dog of Hong Kong's last colonial governor Chris Patten, a Norfolk terrier called Whisky, who survived after swallowing poisoned lumps of chicken in 1997.
A reward of more than 20,000 US dollars has been put up by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and an anonymous animal lover to help capture the poisoner who always strikes in the same area.
Criminal psychologists who have examined the cases believe the killer may have an obsessive dislike of dogs who foul footpaths and may have begun his campaign as a means of revenge.
