Dogs Are Being Zapped By Electrified Brooklyn Sidewalk: Reddit

BEDFORD-STUYVESANT, BROOKLYN — ConEd zapped the pooch. Stray voltage near Throop Avenue and Kosciuszko Street has literally shocked five dogs and figuratively shocked their owners, according to posters on the NYC subreddit.

“I feel so guilty for causing her pain,” wrote Reddit user Allen_MacGyverson, who described how his dog “buckled” Tuesday, after he pulled her across a strip of sidewalk near his home.

The dog had repeatedly tried to avoid a sidewalk slab on his Bed-Stuy block, but only when he compared stories with neighbors did the Reddit poster realize a stray electric current that had “shocked” the dogs.

“Don't make the same mistake,” he wrote, “And let me know if you've got any good tips for letting a dog know you're sorry!”

Winter is a dangerous time for the city’s dogs — most often shoeless — who walk through salt and melted snow that can be a conduit for currents from metal manholes, a Con Edison rep told the New York Post.

“Around this time of year, after a major snowfall, we hear about this happening,” said ConEd Spokeswoman Joy Faber.

“We identified and deactivated an abandoned electric service,” she added. “Our apology for the disruption.”

Stray currents from electrified metal plates have proven fatal for New Yorkers and their dogs.

Jodie S. Lane, 30, died in 2004 when she touched one of her dogs who happened to be standing on a the cover of ConEd utility box in the East Village, the New York Times reported.

And Bella, a large pit bull, was killed by stray voltage on the Lower East Side in 2014, according to the Daily News.

Several Reddit users posted responses thanking the Bed-Stuy dog owner for the warning, and several dog owners offered one piece of advice:

“Buy doggie booties.”

Photo courtesy of epicioci/Pixabay