IPOH: About 20 stray dogs are believed to have been poisoned and killed near the Tasik Cermin Eco Park in Gunung Rapat.

       Photos of the carcasses being collected by Ipoh City Council workers have since gone viral on social media on Saturday (Feb 26).

       Ipoh Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals president Ricky Soong said he received a call from a volunteer on the gruesome finding at about 7.30am.

       "When I got there, the city council workers were already removing the bodies. We believe the animals were poisoned, which has been happening quite frequently," he said when met during a soft-launch of the eco park here on Saturday.

       "I implore the people not to take matters into their own hands by being so cruel to poison the animals. They can always call the city council if there are problems with stray dogs," he added.

       Soong said under the Animal Welfare Act, those caught killing animals can be fined up to RM100,000 or face a maximum three years' imprisonment or both.

       He said the ISPCA will continue to work with the city council in handling matters related to stray animals.

       "We are working with the city council on the trap-neuter-release-manage (TNRM) programme. We hope to get more support from the people towards the programme," he said.

       Meanwhile, Perak local government committee chairman Datuk Nolee Ashilin Mohammed Radzi has denied accusations that the dogs were poisoned by city council workers.

       Nolee Ashilin said the city council had received reports about the matter and its workers were there to remove the carcasses.

       "We believe the dogs were poisoned by someone else. We will not tolerate it if the authorities are doing so," she said, adding that they would check on the matter.