Dog poisonings associated with a Microcystis aeruginosa bloom in the Netherlands

Abstract

In early autumn 2011, three dogs died after they had been exposed to a Microcystis aeruginosa bloom on Lake Amstelmeer, The Netherlands. The cyanobacterial scum from the lake contained up to 5.27 × 103 μg g(-1) dry-weight microcystin, the vomit of one of the dogs contained on average 94 µg microcystin g(-1) dry-weight. In both cases, microcystin-LR was the most abundant variant. This is the first report of dog deaths associated with a Microcystis bloom and microcystin poisoning in The Netherlands.

Figure 1

Chromatogram of (A) a calibration standard containing eight microcystins and nodularin and (B) an undiluted sample of dog vomit. Transitions for the same compounds are shown in the same color, transition for the quantifier ion are represented by a bold line, transitions for the qualifier ions are represented by a normal line.

Figure 2

Concentrations of eight microcystin variants in (A) water samples collected at eight different sites in Lake Amstelmeer, The Netherlands; (B) scum material collected at the shore and from the surface of the lake and (C) vomit of a Labrador retriever that died after ingesting scum material. Each part of each column represents the average of three analytical replicates, full data are presented in Supplementary Information 2.