Halifax blue green algae

A veterinary hospital in Halifax says a dog's recent death was connected to exposure to blue-green algae at Long Lake in Hammonds Plains, halifax blue green algae. Halifax Veterinary Hospital said in a halifax blue green algae Wednesday that a dog suddenly died after spending about five minutes in the water at the lake on June The vet hospital said the dog quickly lost the ability to stand, was non-responsive and showed "seizure-like" activity. Halifax Veterinary Hospital said exposure to the algae, which produces toxins, can cause illness in humans and can be fatal to pets.

Want to discuss? Please read our Commenting Policy first. If you get Global News from Instagram or Facebook - that will be changing. Find out how you can still connect with us. Officials are warning about the risks of blue-green algae after a dog died following an exposure at Long Lake in the Halifax area last month. Blue-green algae naturally occurs in freshwater environments and may grow when weather conditions are calm and warm.

Halifax blue green algae

The municipality wants to help Haligonians identify the potentially harmful bacteria and learn about the risks for their pets and children. Elizabeth Montgomery, water resources specialist with HRM, gave reporters a primer on blue green algae. They like warm water, meaning climate change is likely to lead to more cyanobacteria. Blooms can also look like pollen or even an oil spill. The difference is that the blue green algae is under water too, whereas pollen and oil sit on the surface. There could be blue green algae blooms happening in more remote lakes too. The bacteria has killed at least eight dogs in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick in the last 10 years, Montgomery said. That includes one confirmed death this year at Long Lake in Hammonds Plains. In , two dogs died after ingesting blue green algae on Fish Lake, next to Grand Lake. The mats are something scientists in Nova Scotia have only really been learning about over the last two years. The benthic mats grow across the bottom of a lake or river. The blooms, while still potentially harmful, are much less dangerous. They contain liver toxins, not neurotoxins like the mats.

Blue-green algae can be suspended in the water of a lake, pond, river halifax blue green algae stream or float in a thin layer on the surface. The dog died on the way to the emergency hospital around two hours after leaving the water. You can view the Water Supply Plants map in a new browser window.

Want to discuss? Please read our Commenting Policy first. If you get Global News from Instagram or Facebook - that will be changing. Find out how you can still connect with us. A lake can seem beautiful and harmless from a distance, but on the surface of the water could lie dangerous blue-green algae.

Want to discuss? Please read our Commenting Policy first. If you get Global News from Instagram or Facebook - that will be changing. Find out how you can still connect with us. The Halifax Regional Municipality is asking residents to familiarize themselves with blue-green algae, a harmful bacteria that can be found naturally in lakes, rivers, ponds and streams. An information session on blue-green algae was held at Oat Hill Lake in Dartmouth, one of the places where the bacteria was reported last month. Also known as cyanobacteria, algae are some of the oldest organisms on earth and can be found naturally in lakes, rivers and ponds in and around the Halifax region.

Halifax blue green algae

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If you think you might have come into contact with blue-green algal toxins in the water, you should remove any affected clothing and wash the affected area with clean water as soon as possible. Caution should be taken when considering the consumption of fish caught in areas where blue-green algal blooms occur. For pets, exposure to blue-green algae can be fatal. Social Sharing. Animals are attracted to their odour and may try to eat them. If you want to keep using surface water for your drinking water source, you should get the water tested. Added nutrients in a lake are known to cause blue green algae blooms. If a beach is closed, do not swim or engage in any other recreational activity that may involve contact with water e. Skin contact with blue-green algae toxins may cause result in hives, rashes, or blisters. Under the right conditions blue-green algae can increase in numbers quickly, forming a bloom. You should wash with clean water as soon as possible after contact with a suspected algae bloom. If the potential blue-green algae is in public drinking water supplies, an inspector from the Department of Environment and Climate Change visually confirms the presence of blue-green algae and works directly with the water supply owner. Blooms can also look like pollen or even an oil spill. Click to return to homepage Leave a comment Share this item on Facebook Share this item via WhatsApp Share this item on Twitter Send this page to someone via email See more sharing options. The difference is that the blue green algae is under water too, whereas pollen and oil sit on the surface.

The municipality wants to help Haligonians identify the potentially harmful bacteria and learn about the risks for their pets and children.

Advisories will remain in effect until no blooms can be visually observed and subsequent test results indicate that toxin levels in the water are within safe limits. The toxins in some algae can make people sick and can be fatal for pets if ingested. Also known as cyanobacteria, algae can look like grass clippings floating around the water, or even spilled paint. Either way, making sure nothing harmful is entering the lake is worthwhile. You can view the Water Supply Plants map in a new browser window. Video link. Blue-green algae toxins, if present, could be accidentally swallowed or inhaled. Closures also serve to remind users to check the water for the formation of highly visible blooms and mats which pose the most risk before entering. Living benthic mat material covering the tributary between Fish Lake and Grand Lake in Very few incidents of human poisoning have been reported. They often smell musty or grassy when healthy, and they can smell like ammonia when decomposing.