Parenting-Furkids
Dogs => Caring For Your Dog => Medical Issues => Topic started by: DeeDee on July 09, 2018, 04:32:12 PM
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We had a young spaniel in the surgery today which less than half an hour earlier had been romping around on a walk with his owners. Now, despite the frantic attempts of vets and nurses to save him he lay dead on the clinic table. That's how dangerous blue-green algae is.
What was unusual in this case is that the dog was poisoned by algae from a river - it's a problem usually associated with lochs where the water isn't flowing and there's a chance for it to build up. However, with rivers drying in the drought, flows are sluggish and the river-banks are getting coated in algae as the river level drops.
There's different sorts of blue-green algae - some aren't that toxic and your dog may have encountered them without any problems. Others, like this one can kill in minutes, so don't let past experience make you complacent.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10156575374229697
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I have heard of that before. Thanks for bringing it up. :-*
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Part of FL is under a state of emergency right now because of a bloom of it:
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/florida/fl-reg-scott-algae-emergency-20180709-story.html
Gov. Rick Scott declared a state of emergency in seven Florida counties to combat the toxic green algae bloom caused by water discharges from Lake Okeechobee.
The order issued Monday covers Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie, Glades, Hendry, Lee and Okeechobee counties.
It allows the Department of Environmental Protection and the South Florida Water Management District to waive some restrictions to store water in additional areas south of the lake.
The water district was instructed to explore options to move lake water through the Hillsboro, North New River and Miami canals.
Scott ordered the Department of Environmental Protection and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to spend more staff time on water testing. The governor also told the DEP to set up a grant program to help local governments pay for clean-up services.