A DUP councillor has urged dog owners to be vigilant after his dog displayed symptoms of a sudden onset illness while walking in a park in the city.
Cllr Andrew McCormick had been walking his dog in Orangefield Park, East Belfast last night when it became unwell after spending some time in the water.
Speaking to Belfast Live, Cllr McCormick said that his vet has told him to prepare for the worst.
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"I had the dog down in Orangefield Park last night along with my wife and child," he said.
"He had been running in and out of the river as you go towards the park and I had noticed that he kept coming out of the trees and looking for us which was a bit strange.
"We put him on the lead as we were coming into the estate and he kept walking on my toes and I said to my wife that I thought there was something wrong with him."
Andrew said that when they returned home, he tested the dogs eyesight with some treats and noticed that he could see the treats in one hand while he looked quite clumsy when the treats were in the other hand.
"I took him out and showered him down thinking that he had something in his eye.
"I let him out to the toilet in the front garden last night and on his way in he bumped into the door and was quite disorientated."
When Cllr McCormick got up this morning, he found stools and urine on the kitchen floor and the dog had very poor visibility.
"We phoned the vet and when he opened we took him down. After an initial assessment the vet said that there could be neurological damage caused by toxins in the river and that there had been a few fatal incidents with dogs going into water recently [across Northern Ireland].
"We have left Cooper with him and are waiting to see how he responds to the treatment.
"They are not sure what the toxins could be but I will be following this up with the council as this is an area which is very accessible."
There have been a number of reports across Northern Ireland in recent weeks of dogs suffering fatalities after coming into contact with blue green algae while walking near water.
Cllr McCormick has said that the water is also popular with children and young people and said that he would urge caution about entering the water until it is clear what happened to Cooper.
A Belfast City Council spokesperson said: "Belfast City Council has received a report regarding the river at Orangefield Park and is aware of a social media post in relation to this area.
"We have made contact with the dog owner involved this afternoon and will continue to liaise with them and monitor the situation.
"As a precautionary measure at this time, we would like to remind all dog owners that dogs should be kept on leads within our parks."
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