Babesiosis
What is babesiosis?
Babesiosis is a serious disease spread from host-to-host by infected tick bites. It is particularly prevalent throughout France and British dogs travelling abroad can be badly affected by babesiosis as they have never encountered the disease and therefore have no tolerance.
Symptoms
Symptoms include fever, anaemia, blood in the urine and jaundice. Susceptible dogs can die within a few days of the symptoms appearing.
What causes babesiosis?
Babesiosis is carried from host-to-host by a tick-borne parasite, Babesia spp, which destroys red blood cells. Ticks will feed for up to 3 days before they transmit infection.
Treatment
Treatment is often costly and may not always be curative, so preventative measures are advisable if you’re travelling abroad with your pet. For further information, contact your vet.
Prevention
It is advisable to protect dogs from ticks while abroad and there is a requirement to do so shortly before returning back to the UK with your pet under The Pet Travel Scheme (PETS). If ticks are killed within 48 hours of attachment you will minimise the risk of disease transmission. For further information, contact your vet.
