Warning as much-loved dog dies after drinking contaminated pond water

Dog owners are warned to keep their pets away from pond water this summer after a German Shepherd named Luna sadly died of kidney failure after she drank from a pond.

Luna fell ill then passed away despite the efforts of her vet after drinking from a pond in a public park.

The water was believed to have been contaminated with blue-green algae, and the toxins in the algae attacked the German Cross Belgian-Shepherd's vital organs.

On Tuesday 2 July, the one-year-old - belonging to Emily Lockwood - drank from the pond and by the next morning, showed signs of being unwell.

Luna was violently sick and Miss Lockwood urgently took her dog to the local vets.

Distraught, she said: "She was sent home after being given an injection to stop her being sick, and was also given antibiotics but she couldn't take them as everything was coming back up."

By Thursday, her Mum had to take Luna back to the vets, who was quickly put on an IV drip as she was becoming dehydrated and tests revealed her kidney's were not functioning properly.

"On Friday we got a call from the vets who said she needed to be taken to an animal hospital on the Wirral."

"They very quickly detected there was bacteria in her kidneys that had travelled to her lungs and liver, they thought it came from the pond water she had drunk on the Tuesday and that it was caused by the algae in the pond."

At 1am on Saturday morning, Miss Lockwood received a devastating call from the animal hospital, who informed her they were performing CPR on Luna, but wanted permission to stop as they believed it wasn't in the dog's interests to continue.

"Luna had a weak immune system but sadly passed away due to the toxins carried in the water. It resulted in acute kidney failure which turned out to be incurable."

She added: "Luna may have had a weak immune system but until last Wednesday she was a very happy and energetic dog, and we all miss her very much."

Last week, Edinburgh Live reported on the toxic blue-green algae blooms that had been found at Threipmuir reservoir in Balerno.

The Pentlands Regional Park Facebook page posted:

"BLUE GREEN ALGAE WARNING - Threipmuir Reservoir

"Blue green algae bloom has been seen today in Threipmuir reservoir. Please be aware that contact with this algae can cause illness in humans and pets. Please avoid swimming at affected locations."

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