Three dogs — including a police K9 — got shocked by stray voltage on a West Village sidewalk Saturday when they stepped on a charged metal utility cover that was buried beneath some pavement.
Andrew Macklin, 30, said there was no indication at first of what was going on when his 4-year-old pooch Lola started howling in pain while walking on a leash past 230 W. 10th St. at about 5:30 p.m.
“It was just a regular sidewalk, just cement,” said Macklin. “There were no exposed wires or anything… When I got in front of a brownstone with a ‘For Sale’ sign, Lola screamed in agony. She started bucking around and thrashing.”
Macklin said he tried to comfort Lola, but the pooch was in such pain she bit him.
“Which is crazy because she is so gentle, I was in total shock,” Macklin said of the Australian Shepard. “I scooped her up upside down in my arms, and she calmed down and started licking my face.”
But the trouble with the hidden power cover wasn’t over. Lola’s screams brought Macklin’s wife, Blair, and their other dog, Teddy, running to their side.
“[Teddy] lost it too,” the owner said of the cockapoo.
As the terrified couple stood there, two officers and an NYPD K9 responded to the pups’ cries.
“We were right across from a police station, and the cops came out and they said they thought a baby was being abused because of the [dog’s] screams,” Macklin said. “One officer had a German Shepard, and as soon as they came over the police dog jumped back.”
None of the dogs suffered any visible injuries from the shocks.
Police sources said the electricity — about 90 volts — came through a metal utility service cover that’s cemented under the sidewalk. ConEd crews immediately responded.
“Stray voltage usually results when damaged wires are exacerbated by salt and melting snow,” ConEd spokesman Philip O’Brien said, adding the company eliminated the wayward electricity by 9:30 p.m.
The slurry of salt and water saturate the concrete and can act as a conductor, shocking bare paws.
“There also has to be something wrong with the wires below,” another spokesman said, adding that dogs are more sensitive to the current in part because they aren’t wearing rubber soles.
Additional reporting by Abigail Gepner