CHEROKEE COUNTY, Ga. — A Georgia couple is mourning their beloved dog after they say it ingested blue-green algae blooms at Lake Allatoona and suddenly died that same day.
Morgan Fleming posted about the death of her and her husband's border collie, Arya, on Saturday.
"We took our sweet Arya to the lake and had the best day playing ball and swimming around! About 30 minutes later on the drive home, we noticed her making weird noises and she threw up and pooped in the car," Morgan Flemming wrote in the Facebook post. "We called our vet on the drive and they suggested we take her in. By this point our girl couldn’t even stand... They told us she was in critical condition so we took her to the ER. By the time we got there, she was brain dead... Today was absolutely awful."
This morning we thought, it’s so hot! Let’s go to the lake! We took our sweet Arya to the lake and had the best day...
Posted by Morgan Fleming on Saturday, August 10, 2019
“One study showed that 58 percent of dogs die of this straight out,” said Dr. Sherry Weaver, of Animal Hospital of Towne Lake.
According to the Fleming's Facebook post, the couple believe blue-green algae in the lake in metro Atlanta is what ultimately killed their dog.
WSB spoke to Dr. Sherry Weaver, of Animal Hospital of Towne Lake in Woodstock, Georgia, who said the toxin kills almost instantly.
“It completely kills the cells in the liver," Weaver said. 'It can also cause neurological damage."
Weaver said this type of blue-green algae toxin is very rare, but owners who notice their dog is vomiting or unable to walk, they should take their pet to an emergency vet as soon as possible.
Cox Media Group
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