12 October 2009
A dog that recently died after visiting Coromandel’s Tapu beach has tested positive for Tetrodotoxin (TTX) – the same toxin found in dogs and sea slugs recently on Auckland beaches.
The Auckland Regional Public Health Service (ARPHS) and Franklin District Council is advising people to exercise caution when visiting beaches along the Firth of Thames.
Franklin District Council GM Environmental Services James Jefferson says, “With this sad occurrence at Tapu, on the Firth of Thames, it brings this closer to home for Franklin residents. For all those visiting Firth of Thames beaches such as Kaiaua, please be careful and follow the guidelines for children and animals.”
Franklin District Council Environmental Health Officers have been monitoring the coastline, however nothing suspicious has been found.
The following precautions are recommended:
Children and pets must be closely supervised at all times
Children and pets should not eat things found on the beach
Parents need to be aware of where their children are swimming or playing and what they are handling
People should take care not to touch any sea life (dead or alive) found on the beach
Sea slugs on any beach must be avoided
Further information:
Following the death of a dog at Auckland’s Narrowneck Beach, sea slugs, both dead and alive, were found at both Narrowneck and Cheltenham beaches.
Both the sea slugs and the vomit from the dead dog were tested and found to contain TTX, which is a known potent poison found in tropical puffer fish but not previously described in sea slugs. TTX is extremely toxic to humans and even a very small dose would be fatal.
Approximately 15 dogs from a wide geographic area within the Hauraki Gulf have become unwell with symptoms consistent with TTX poisoning. Five of these dogs have died.
There is still a lot of uncertainty about this event and the origin of the TTX in the sea slugs is unknown. It is also unknown whether sea slugs can clear TTX from their systems, or if this is a one-off or a recurrent, localised or generalised event.
This means that anyone going to the beach must be cautious.
Information for a First Aid Response for Tetrodotoxin (TTX) Poisoning is available on the ARPHS website.www.arphs.govt.nz
More information is available at www.arphs.govt.nz/Media_Releases/20090925_HaurakiGulf.asp