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Rainy walk a shocking experience for Port Moody pooch

A walk in Thursday night’s rain turned into a shocking experience for Toby the dog.
Shocked dog
MARIO BARTEL/THE TRI-CITY NEWS After his dog, Toby, was jolted as they walked past the Westhill Community Centre Thursday night, Scott Montague retrieved a volt meter and discovered the a part of the concrete pad outside the pool entrance was charged with 76 volts of electricity.

A walk in Thursday night’s rain turned into a shocking experience for Toby the dog.

Toby, an eight-year-old standard poodle, was strolling with his person, Scott Montague, past the entrance to the pool at the Westhill Community Centre when he suddenly became agitated and skittish.

Montague thought his dog had just spotted a snake or some other critter, but when they retraced their steps across the concrete pad a short while later, Toby “just went straight up in the air.”

Montague said he had no idea what could have shocked his dog like that other than, well, a shock. So he went to his nearby home and retrieved a volt meter.

Sure enough, part of the concrete pad was charged with an electric current as much as 76 volts. The wet surface conducted the electricity straight into Toby’s bare paws.

“I’m glad he’s a big dog,” said Montague. “If he was a small dog, he probably would have died.”

Concerned that others might be jolted, Montague alerted the city and then Port Moody police. He also went home to print off some warning signs and fashioned a barricade with packing tape.

“If something happened to somebody, I’d feel horrible,” said Montague.

Rosemary Lodge, a spokesperson for the city of Port Moody, said the area was inspected Friday morning and the problem traced to a broken wire beneath the pavement that leads to a light fixture on the stairs. She said it’s been fixed.

As for Toby, he got some extra cuddles after his walk and enjoyed the rare treat of being allowed to sleep in his owners’ bed. Though it wasn’t the most restful night, said Montague.

Toby was “yelping and jerking through the night,” he said, as if he was reliving the experience.