Chelsea succumbed to a 1080 bait on June 29 after a day of frolicking with four other dogs at a small lake off the Lake Nash road 60 kilometres outside of Mount Isa. Miss Quinn said watching Chelsea – who she described as a member of her family — die an uncomfortable death was an awful experience.  

“I try not to focus on those last 10 minutes of her life, because it’s there in my mind, I saw the pain on her face but I try and remember the four years of her being healthy and happy and having fun,” she said. 

“It was awful to watch her go through that and she was in a lot of distress for that little period. It looked like it sent her mad.” 

Her friend Tanya Jones said she sat up all night with her three dogs, who were at the lake that day with Chelsea, to make sure they didn’t have any similar symptoms

“I think the worst part about it was, when Lee and I talked about it, her [Chelsea’s] face just looked like she wanted to scream,” she added, fighting back tears.  

Although no formal toxicology report was done, the veterinarian who saw Chelsea on the night of her death confirmed she showed all the symptoms of a 1080 bait poisoning, including accelerated rigor mortis, or stiffening of the limbs. 

Usually aware of the warning signs around areas where 1080 baits are in use, Miss Quinn said the only signage to indicate there was baiting happening in the area they visited was a small sign stuck to a fence as they drove back towards the highway on their way home. 

“There should just be something, something on the main road they should have up as you drive down,” she said. 

“If there was a sign there saying that it was private property and there was a chance there would be baits laid there you’d turn around and go somewhere else.”

A Biosecurity Queensland spokesperson said landowners are required to display warning signs at all entrances to their property before using 1080 bait and keep them visible for at least one month after baits are laid.

Landowners are also obliged to inform all neighbours within a two kilometre radius that they will be carrying out 1080 baiting on their property and notify any property having frontage to wherebaits are to be laid.

The signage should include the date baits were laid, contact telephone number, toxin name and target animal.

Mount Isa City Council has a register of every private landholder using 1080 baits but it’s the responsibility of the person travelling on to a property to ask permission from the landholder before entering their property. 

Miss Quinn said she didn’t want to stop people from being able to take their pets out bush but said she believed more could be done to keep people informed. 

These two dog owners said seeing their own pet suffer from 1080 bait poisoning compelled them to start campaigning against its use in Queensland. 

“Watching that animal go through that, knowing that there’s lots of other animals dying that way, it’s just horrible to think any animal has to go through that,” Miss Quinn said. 

“We understand they need to do it because the condition of animals is poor out there and the dogs are bringing them down, so they have to protect their livestock, but surely there’s a better way than indiscriminate baiting.”