Veterinary Professionals - Vet Pro - Are you putting your pet at risk?

More and more people are signing their animals up for the Pet Passport Scheme, over 136,500 dogs and cats have come into the U.K without the need for quarantine. But have you ever considered that these animals could be bringing diseases with them?

The Pet Passport Scheme has strict rules which have been put in place to prevent Rabies but there are many other diseases such as Leishmaniasis, Babesiosis, Bruclla Canis and Heartworm which could be contracted by these animals and carried back here to Britain via dogs travelling Europe. These diseases are known to be rife in parts of France and Spain. Barbesiosis is transmitted by ticks found in areas where sheep and cattle graze. France is well known to have many of these ticks especially in The Loire Valley region but also in areas such as Pairs. Belgium and Germany are also affected. Clinical signs are fever, anaemia, blood in the urine and jaundice. Sadly there have already been fatalities in dogs due to contracting this disease whilst travelling on the Pet Passport Scheme. These diseases are serious. If your dog or cat shows signs of ill health during or after travel you must seek veterinary attention immediately. Ticks can be prevented by using Frontline every month. Check your pets daily for ticks – if you find any kill the tick first – use Frontline spray directly on the tick or smear the tick with vasoline which will suffocate it (as they breathe through their skin) then use a tick remover and twist the tick off gently. Heart worm is spread via mosquitoes, help to prevent your pet and yourself receiving bites by using mosquito nets at all times. Deltamethrin collars can be used to deter mosquitos. They are called Scalibor and are available from Intervet. They are not yet readily available in the UK but soon will be. In the mean time you can purchase them from this site http://www.vet-medic.com/indexuk.asp Leishmaniasis infects people and animals – it can be fatal. It causes nasty skin lesions, swelling of the spleen and liver, anaemia and fever. The incubation period can be a month to a few years. High risk areas for this disease are Italy, Scilily, Greece, Malta, Southern and Eatern Spain and the Balearics, Southern France and Corsica. Ehrlichiosis is another tick borne diease. Signs are non-specific initially but hemorrhage from the nose is common. Heartworm is spread also by mosquitos. The parasite lives in the heart chambers and is fatal. There have been cases in Britain. Stronghold will prevent heartworm so it would be advisable to use it just in case. Heartworm is zoonotic but it is rare for humans to catch it. I am not trying to alarm you but these disease are nasty and owners taking their pets abroad need to be aware of the diseases and how to prevent them. This site is very good for information http://www.petplanet.co.uk/petplanet/travel/index.htm Just be aware and cautious, taking your pet on holiday may not be as fun as you think…..