Police in Colorado are searching for a someone who has been leaving drug-laced hot dogs in a yard, repeatedly sickening a family's dogs.
Investigators are looking into at least three incidents at the home in Broomfield, Colorado, since late 2025, including two that have made the dogs sick, the police department there said. Broomfield is a city of about 80,000 residents just outside Denver.
"Investigators believe the intended targets are the family's dogs," the Broomfield Police Departmentsaid. "Based on the circumstances and pattern of the incidents, investigators believe this specific residence is being intentionally targeted."
Police don't know who is targeting the family dogs. Investigators have reviewed surveillance footage from the neighborhood and canvassed the area, but don't have any suspects, the police department said on March 30.
Lorie and Gus on his adoption day at the Best Friends Pet Resource Center in Northwest Arkasnas." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Lorie and dog at the Best Friends Pet Resource Center." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Lorie at Best Friends Pet Resource Center in Northwest Arkansas." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
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Lorie and Gus on his adoption day at the Best Friends Pet Resource Center in Northwest Arkasnas.
The first incident happened on Nov. 22, 2025, when the homeowner was doing work in her backyard and found two hot dogs. A "crystal-like" substance was found inside the hot dogs, and testing showed they contained methamphetamine, police said in a statement.
On Dec. 26, 2025, the homeowner's dog and her daughter's dog both started exhibiting "unusual behavior" after eating one or more hot dogs found in the backyard. An uneaten hot dog was also found. The dogs were taken to a vet, and they tested positive for methamphetamine.
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Most recently, on March 22, one of the family's dogs again became ill after eating an unknown substance in the front yard, and tested positive for both methamphetamine and MDMA, or ecstasy.
The police department said it recently brought its own K-9, Rodo, to the home to do an "open-air sniff" of the front and back yards, but they were negative at the time. An investigation is ongoing, and police are asking for any information about the case to contact the department.
After the dogs ingested the drug-laced hot dogs, the Frank family told KUSA they showed symptoms including panting, not wanting to lie down, spinning in circles and foaming at the mouth.
Jillian Frank, the homeowner's daughter, toldKUSA in Denverthat she and her mother at first assumed it was a "random act of animal cruelty," and that her mother has no conflicts with anyone in the neighborhood. They have installed cameras but haven't seen a suspect in the act, the family told KUSA.
"I feel absolutely helpless. My dogs are my absolute world," Annalyn Frank said.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Police search for culprit after meth-laced hot dogs sickens pets