Red Tide

Red Tide has invaded New Smyrna and the Volusia beaches yet again. I understand this is a rare thing here but it has hit us hard since October. The picture above shows red tide invading Little Gasparilla Island in SW Florida several years ago. The west coast of FL has many more problems than we do but it is here now and is a problem.

Four Dolphins were found dead at Canaveral National Seashore this week, pets are struggling, humans are sniffing, sneezing and coughing. I myself have had major allergy like issues all week. IT is so rare in non-Gulf areas that NOAA does not even track it in the Atlantic. I found a few resources on it:

Red Tide Alert

Red Tide

FL Natural Resources

Here are some documented symptoms:

1. Headache/migraine

2. Dry mouth, cracked lips

3. Extreme fatigue

4. Constant thirst

5. Extreme respiratory problems, coughing, lack of breath, laryngitis, sinusitis, and extreme irritation of the lungs.

6. Upset stomach

Pet symptoms include:

1. Limited to uncontrollable sneezing.

2. Backwards cough, it's a cross between a cough and a choke. Once a dog has had a high exposure they can continue this type of coughing even if they have been brought inside. Beware, this has proven to be a strong indicator of impending problems. Keep the animals in clean air.

3. Uncontrollable swallowing accompanied by foaming at the mouth. This is seen when they get high doses of toxic air on the beach. Dogs have dropped as they walked on the beach. This happened on our island. And letters also pointed this out in St.Pete.

4. Drunken walk, they lose their motor skills, and are not sure of the location of their feet. They are losing sensory perception. This is FACT.

5. Lack of appetite and lack of energy for a day or two. This is seen in the dogs that have the toxins building in their systems. At times they may swallow constantly like they have something stuck in their throat, and droll slightly. This may pass or continue to full blown seizures.

6. Intestinal problems, digestive problems.

7. If exposure is severe there will be a Total shutdown of the nervous system, accompanied by blindness and deafness.

Thepet symptoms were observed in dogs in the SW area of FL were Red Tide is far more prevalent. But this bears watching in our NSB Pets.

Please send me your comments and observations, I will compile and send to the red tide alert site.