Meenachi Kannan, who has been caring for the strays in the Penara 12 area here for a year, said she lodged the reports after she found the animals lying motionless during her evening feeding round.

“When I arrived around 8.30pm, I saw one of the dogs lying on the road. I thought it was an accident and so I wrapped the carcass for disposal.

“But as I continued feeding the other strays in the area, I found six more (dead), all with foam in the mouth and no visible injuries,” she told FMT.

A plastic bag of rice, believed to contain the poison, was later recovered near where the dogs were found. Meenachi said volunteers disposed of it immediately to prevent other strays from consuming it.

She then alerted her rescue network, and together they rushed four other dogs, also believed to have been poisoned, to Cuddles Veterinary Clinic, where they remain on drips and in stable condition.

Tay Ching Szu, co-founder of the Penang Stray Rescue Society (PGSR), said the veterinarian at the clinic suspected that the dogs had eaten food laced with rat poison.

She said one of the dogs was collected by DVS officers for tests at 12.20pm on Wednesday while the rest were buried by PGSR.

FMT has reached out to the police for comment.

In July last year, FMT reported that more than 20 dogs were found dead over several weeks in the Tanjung Bungah area, also in Penang.