Scoop - 1/07/13
The Greater Wellington Regional Council, Masterton District Council and Regional Public Health are urging river users to protect themselves and their dogs from toxic algae, with an increase of algal growth detected in Masterton's Waipoua River this week.
Toxic algae - or cyanobacteria - form brown or black clumps on river beds and can kill livestock and dogs. The clumps can peel off and often wash up on the river's edge where dogs can easily come into contact with them. If your dog eats toxic algae, it can die very quickly. Contact with toxic algae can cause vomiting, diarrhoea, skin irritations and other allergy-type symptoms in humans.
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