Lake free of harmful algae (for now)

Here’s some good news for doggos and the humans who love them: It’s finally safe for Fido to splash around in Lady Bird Lake again. Thanks to the cooler weather, the harmful algae that poses a risk to dogs is no longer present in the water. Watershed Protection staffers who have been monitoring the lake weekly say the blue-green algae is unlikely to return until next summer. Adds the department in a news release, “Thankfully, we did not receive any reports of dogs becoming ill or dying due to algae exposure after swimming in the lake this year. We credit this success to the care dog owners took in following recommendations and keeping their pets out of the water during the long, hot summer and fall.” You can check the current status of the monitoring program here.