Charges laid after dogs sprayed

A Clarington man is facing several charges after dogs at an Oshawa park were sprayed with an irritant.

On Saturday, Aug. 20, an Oshawa man reported that he had been walking his dogs in the off-leash area of the Harmony Valley Conservation Area when a male riding a mountain bike approached. According to police, the dog owner called for the cyclist to stop so that he could hold his dogs – however, the cyclist continued making his way ahead and sprayed the dogs with an aerosol irritant. Police say a physical encounter then ensued between the two before the cyclist left the area.

A police investigation turned up two other similar incidents – one on July 23 and another on Aug. 6 – that involved the same cyclist either spraying dogs or threatening to do so as he rode by.

A 55-year-old male of Firner Street in Clarington has been charged with two counts of uttering threats, four counts of mischief under $5,000 and two counts of causing pain, suffering or injury to an animal.