Coronation Street fans have threatened to boycott the soap after one of its cutest residents was left for dead.
Animal lovers watching the ITV serial drama were angry and upset when terrier Eccles was poisoned by a sausage sandwich.
Read more: Coronation Street star Lucy-Jo Hudson makes her debut on Hollyoaks
Ken Barlow’s beloved pooch was targeted in a cruel revenge plot by Simon Barlow’s callous gang.
And Corrie fans were sickened to think that Eccles might die as a result.
In scenes shown on Wednesday night (4 July), Ken’s pet was discovered on death’s door after being made part of a disgusting payback aimed at Ken’s grandson Simon.
Don’t miss out: Three steps to ensure you see all ED!’s latest news on Facebook
Simon has been shunned by his group of unsavoury mates after grassing up ring leader Tyler when he broke into Daniel Osbourne and Adam Barlow’s flat and attacked Flora McArdle.
Despite being part of the gang, Simon did the right thing and stayed in the flat to make sure the pensioner was okay.
Offering to wash up the dishes in Roys Rolls for free to win favour with his neighbours, he is unsettled when Tyler arrives pretending to offer an olive branch.
He tells Simon that he’ll forgive and forget if he’s given a free sausage sandwich.
Of course, Tyler then put slug poison in the sandwich and fed it to Eccles.
Luckily, Toyah Battersby found the canine, panting and yelping in distress, in the Barlow’s backyard.
And viewers were left distressed and worrying that the soap fave might not survive the ordeal.
https://twitter.com/Emma_LouiseMSD/status/1014583123101782016
Why did they have to poison the dog #coronationstreet
— Laura (@giraffeloverx) July 4, 2018
https://twitter.com/Natalya_V_H/status/1014615371033272320
they can kill as many human characters as they want on corrie but as soon as they poison a dog nope that’s not okay
— logan⛄️ (@ashh235) July 5, 2018
How could anyone poison a dog #Corrie
— Olympia Valance UK (@olympiafan1) July 4, 2018
https://twitter.com/SophieDB123/status/1014580561850064901
https://twitter.com/Kellingtonz/status/1014071439241236482
One lamented: “How can you poison a dog. They are precious gems from God.”
Another blasted: “If that [bleep] poisons Eccles I’m never going to watch.”
A third added: “I know it’s just a soap but how anyone ever poison a defenceless little dog.”
In fact, one viewer was so upset, they reported the scenes to Ofcom.
They wrote: “My friend is complaining to Ofcom about Eccles getting hurt. She’s not happy #Corrie.”
Aaaaand the Oscar goes to….. Eccles… #Corrie Cracking bit of acting there!! pic.twitter.com/C6uitujJAA
— Gillian Hudson (@JillHudson21) July 4, 2018
Somebody give that dog an NTA! #Corrie
— Jemma Louise (@JemmaLouisexxx) July 4, 2018
Some even criticised the soap for showing viewers how to poison a dog…
Other fans took it a bit less seriously, though, and joked that the dog should win a National Television Award!
“Somebody give that dog an NTA!” she cried.
Thankfully the vets told Ken that his terrier should be okay.
But who will nasty Tyler target next?
What did you think of the plot to kill Eccles? Leave us a comment on our Facebook page @EntertainmentDailyFix and let us know what you think!