Dog died from drinking the pond water

[Bestbirths]

Hi, there is a 1 acre pond, fed from up stream and goes down stream. The whatever that is coming from agriculture from farming up stream we suspect made the dog die. Is there any way to naturally clean the pond or water coming into the pond through natural (organic) means? Does anyone have any suggestions or sites or books to refer me to? Thank You

 

[randyt]

i would get the water and dog tested ASAP so yo know what you are dealing with.

 

[Cabin Fever]

Does the 1-acre pond water have pea soup green algae growing in it? It so, this is likely blue-green algae (cyanobacteria). Blue-green algae is quite poisonous to dogs that drink it.

https://www.aspca.org/news/pet-safety-alert-rising-dangers-blue-green-algae

 

[Neb]

Does the 1-acre pond water have pea soup green algae growing in it? It so, this is likely blue-green algae (cyanobacteria). Blue-green algae is quite poisonous to dogs that drink it.

https://www.aspca.org/news/pet-safety-alert-rising-dangers-blue-green-algae

My thought exactly.

Have the water tested. I purchased test kits from a hardware store where a sample is sent to a lab to be tested.

Ben

 

[phideaux]

Welcome from West KY to the forum.

Enjoy.

Jim

 

[Bestbirths]

I'm calling the hardware store right now. its out of stock but the man said they carry the pro lab water quality test kit. It's not for drinking water, its a pond, so will a drinking water test kit work, chewy.com sells a pond kit. Whats the most extensive test if its not algea. I've been told its not algea, its agricultural runoff from people upstream. People that we don't want to mess with. How can we clean the water coming into our pond on his property ourselves without dealing with the neighbors, just deal with it on the property and filter it as it comes in somehow or create the pond into something that cleans that runoff. Those are the solution I am looking for.

 

[Amish Heart]

Welcome from Kansas! I'd say test, but basically no. You have a bad pond.

 

[Meerkat]

Hi, there is a 1 acre pond, fed from up stream and goes down stream. The whatever that is coming from agriculture from farming up stream we suspect made the dog die. Is there any way to naturally clean the pond or water coming into the pond through natural (organic) means? Does anyone have any suggestions or sites or books to refer me to? Thank You

Fill it up with plant life. Underwater is good,sorry I forgot the underwater plant but be careful if it gets loose it will be bad for local rivers and creeks.Very invasive.Did a number on the spring here.

 

[Bestbirths]

Fill it up with plant life. Underwater is good,sorry I forgot the underwater plant but be careful if it gets loose it will be bad for local rivers and creeks.Very invasive.Did a number on the spring here.

Right I don't want to put invasive fish or plant life in it. I'd like to clean it up properly. It's in Missouri. First i get a kit and send it in, and that might be how much can i expect to pay are those $300, or can i just go by common sense, bad pond, algea, spend money on the normal pond healing solutions put legal algea eating fish in it that will not die, add plant life to it, create some kind of plant growth at the sides of where the highly industrial water comes into the land. Where can i find out about this plant life. Will there ever be fishing in this pond? Will the pond ever be useful and can we fix it. would photos help? should i go to my local extension office? can you give me a link to a test kit so i get the right one?

 

[Neb]

The first step in solving a problem is clearly defining what the problem is. (Ben)

Do the test at let it show you which way to go.

Ben

 

[Caribou]

You're getting ahead of yourself. As Neb said, get your water tested before you decide what to do. At this point you are just guessing that the dog died from the water. You're probably right but you still need to test. If you find that the pond is bad you might then want to test the stream where it enters your property. If you have chemicals coming in regularly from the neighbour then you have a bigger problem than just a bad pond.

 

[Neb]

...
? should i go to my local extension office?
...

Yes that too.

You have paid for that with your taxes and you can learn a lot by talking with them!

Ben

 

[Spikedriver]

I grew up on a farm in Iowa so I'm quite familiar with ag runoff. First, what is upstream from you? Hog buildings? Cattle feedlots? Do they apply animal poop as fertilizer upstream from you? How big is the watershed for that stream? Is there anything else in that watershed that could be a polluting source? Is it just cropland?

What does the water look like? Smell it. If it smells like poop, there's poop in it. If an ag operation is letting poop get into the waterways you need to get the DNR involved right now. They will come in and lay wood to any company that's letting poop into the water. I've seen this many times. They will fine the farmer for every single fish, frog, and bird that dies. It can run into the millions.

It might be something natural too. As mentioned, algae blooms can be dangerous. My experience is that dogs usually won't drink bad water like that, but it does happen.

Good luck in finding a solution. If you've got somebody polluting your stream, it needs to be stopped.

 

[phideaux]

My only experience is

Roundup runoff.

Jim

 

[Bestbirths]

I grew up on a farm in Iowa so I'm quite familiar with ag runoff. First, what is upstream from you? Hog buildings? Cattle feedlots? Do they apply animal poop as fertilizer upstream from you? How big is the watershed for that stream? Is there anything else in that watershed that could be a polluting source? Is it just cropland?

What does the water look like? Smell it. If it smells like poop, there's poop in it. If an ag operation is letting poop get into the waterways you need to get the DNR involved right now. They will come in and lay wood to any company that's letting poop into the water. I've seen this many times. They will fine the farmer for every single fish, frog, and bird that dies. It can run into the millions.

It might be something natural too. As mentioned, algae blooms can be dangerous. My experience is that dogs usually won't drink bad water like that, but it does happen.

Good luck in finding a solution. If you've got somebody polluting your stream, it needs to be stopped.

Let me ask you if I can private message you with the gps coordinates to figure this out with google maps.....

 

[randyt]

the dog should b tested too, maybe it got into something else, like auto anti-freeze, not saying it did...

 

[Bestbirths]

I've spent a while looking on google satelite but how do tell up stream from downstream. I can see the stream on the map.

 

[Caribou]

I've spent a while looking on google satelite but how do tell up stream from downstream. I can see the stream on the map.

Go to your pond. Where it comes in is upstream, where it exits is downstream.

Getting the extension office, or other governmental agency, to do the testing is the least expensive. then again, do you really want to involve the government before you determine that the problem started upstream? What if a previous owner dumped frabba dabba X into the pond and you now have the government asking you to pay a million to clean it up?

 

[Bestbirths]

the dog should b tested too, maybe it got into something else, like auto anti-freeze, not saying it did...

I grew up on a farm in Iowa so I'm quite familiar with ag runoff. First, what is upstream from you? Hog buildings? Cattle feedlots? Do they apply animal poop as fertilizer upstream from you? How big is the watershed for that stream? Is there anything else in that watershed that could be a polluting source? Is it just cropland?

What does the water look like? Smell it. If it smells like poop, there's poop in it. If an ag operation is letting poop get into the waterways you need to get the DNR involved right now. They will come in and lay wood to any company that's letting poop into the water. I've seen this many times. They will fine the farmer for every single fish, frog, and bird that dies. It can run into the millions.

It might be something natural too. As mentioned, algae blooms can be dangerous. My experience is that dogs usually won't drink bad water like that, but it does happen.

Good luck in finding a solution. If you've got somebody polluting your stream, it needs to be stopped.

I will go over and smell the pond and see if it smells like poop to try to answer all these questions.....I have to figure out upstream from down. I think the ag is up stream, down looks to be a fabrication plant. I saw ag, i saw just a few cows. The water shed, do you mean the creek, it looks small most of the time. I see cropland. i see a big subdivision thats new with a huge lake and expensive homes that wouldn't like a water scandal. Thats what i see. I see a gas company. I see a chemical company. I have to figure out up stream from down though.

 

[Bestbirths]

Go to your pond. Where it comes in is upstream, where it exits is downstream.

Getting the extension office, or other governmental agency, to do the testing is the least expensive. then again, do you really want to involve the government before you determine that the problem started upstream? What if a previous owner dumped frabba dabba X into the pond and you now have the government asking you to pay a million to clean it up?

ok good point.

 

[backlash]

You might have attributed your dog's death to the wrong thing.
What makes you think it was pond water that killed him?
Have you seen any dead birds or animals near the pond?

 

[Meerkat]

Right I don't want to put invasive fish or plant life in it. I'd like to clean it up properly. It's in Missouri. First i get a kit and send it in, and that might be how much can i expect to pay are those $300, or can i just go by common sense, bad pond, algea, spend money on the normal pond healing solutions put legal algea eating fish in it that will not die, add plant life to it, create some kind of plant growth at the sides of where the highly industrial water comes into the land. Where can i find out about this plant life. Will there ever be fishing in this pond? Will the pond ever be useful and can we fix it. would photos help? should i go to my local extension office? can you give me a link to a test kit so i get the right one?

Our leaders are not protecting our environment at all. I'm no tree hugger but I'm also not against protecting our most precious resorces.
You should see what they have done to our springs which just so happen to be " THE LARGEST CONCENTRAION OF NATURAL SPRINGS ON THE PLANET".Big Sugar has ruined The Everglades too.

I think cat tails may help I'd have to look it up later.

How big is the pond?

 

[Meerkat]

You might have attributed your dog's death to the wrong thing.
What makes you think it was pond water that killed him?
Have you seen any dead birds or animals near the pond?

 

[Spikedriver]

Something I didn't think of before...

Does this pond have fish in it? Are there frogs? What about little snails and such. If there's lots of snails that usually means the water is fairly healthy but it's not always true.

If the pond is stream fed and it's only an acre the stream must be pretty small. If the stream runs year round, check it for little minnows. This time of year isn't the best time to see them, because they get pretty lethargic in cold water, but a constant stream only 2 or 3 feet wide should still have little minnows and crawdads in it. If you find very many dead fish or crawdads anywhere in that stream - upstream from the pond, downstream, or in the pond itself - there's definitely a problem.

 

[Neb]

Something I didn't think of before...

Does this pond have fish in it? Are there frogs? What about little snails and such. If there's lots of snails that usually means the water is fairly healthy but it's not always true.

If the pond is stream fed and it's only an acre the stream must be pretty small. If the stream runs year round, check it for little minnows. This time of year isn't the best time to see them, because they get pretty lethargic in cold water, but a constant stream only 2 or 3 feet wide should still have little minnows and crawdads in it. If you find very many dead fish or crawdads anywhere in that stream - upstream from the pond, downstream, or in the pond itself - there's definitely a problem.

Yes look for life in all three. It will help narrow down.
Ben

 

[zoomzoom]

I have to figure out up stream from down though.

Anywhere in the creek where the water is flowing, toss in a little stick. The direction the stick travels to is down stream.

 

[Dvdljns]

Fill it up with plant life. Underwater is good,sorry I forgot the underwater plant but be careful if it gets loose it will be bad for local rivers and creeks.Very invasive.Did a number on the spring here.

Best to use local plants.

 

[backlash]

On one of the Youtube channels I watch the guy believes he had 3 calves die from drinking pond water. It was a shallow depression in the pasture and collected water from the rain but it was dirty. He fenced it off to keep the rest of his stock out of it.
I have a constant battle keeping my stock tank clean. I pressure wash and scrub it weekly. It didn't help when one of the calves decided to stand in the tank on a hot day.

 

[Pearl]

I had a dog die from blue-green algea poisoning from a stock tank. Didn't bother the other dogs, kidney failure from it. A good friend who is a vet had extensive tests run on the water and the dead dog!

 

[Aklogcabin]

I'm kinda thinking that you may have blamed farming and agricultural contamination for your dog dying. When you don't know where the water is coming from.
Is there beavers around there? They carry deadly bacteria. Snake bite ?
Farmers are very aware of there environmental as there livelihood depends on it.
I'm trying to not be harsh but you need to find the cause before you apply blame and make accusations.
Good luck, sounds like a nice place