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More and more dogs are legally entering the UK from overseas, bringing with them the risk of importing unusual parasites, some of which are zoonotic. Here, Ian Wright and colleagues describe three cases of parasitic worms found in Romanian dogs.

The first Canadian H3N2 canine influenza A outbreak involving an Asian-origin H3N2 canine influenza virus (CIV) began in southwestern Ontario, Canada, in late December 2017. More H3N2 CIV cases were identified in central and eastern Ontario between March and October 2018. Based on epidemiological investigation, 5 clusters were identified (C1, C2, C3a, C3b, and C4); however, the origin of infection has only been revealed for epidemiological cluster C1. Here, we use phylogenetic analyses to unravel the links of virus transmission between the 5 epidemiological clusters and the origin of infection for all epidemiological clusters. Our results demonstrate that the Canadian H3N2 CIV sequences were grouped into four distinct phylogenetic clusters with minimal genetic diversity between these clusters. Large scale phylogenetic analysis of H3N2 CIV from around the globe showed that the Canadian CIVs formed a distinct new clade along with CIVs that have been circulating in the USA since 2017–2018 and in China since 2017. This clade shares a common ancestor of Asian origin. This study concludes that the H3N2 CIV outbreak in Ontario was driven by multiple introductions of South Korean/Chinese-origin H3N2 CIVs over 10 months.

Background The filarioid nematode Dirofilaria repens infects mainly dogs and is transmitted by vector mosquitoes when biting the definitive host. The parasite has mainly been reported from Eastern and Southern Europe, but during recent decades it has expanded its geographic range to some countries in Central and Northern Europe. Here, we report the finding of a fully mature female D. repens in a dog in Denmark. Case presentation A female specimen of the filarioid nematode Dirofilaria repens (superfamily Filarioidea, family Onchocercidae) was isolated from a ruptured subcutaneous nodule in an 18 months old Border Collie on the Danish island of Bornholm. The dog was born in Italy, where it lived for the first 3 months of its life, whereafter it was imported to Denmark via Switzerland. Species diagnosis was based on molecular methods (Polymerase chain reaction PCR and sequencing of ribosomal DNA (rDNA, ITS) and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA, COX1, NADH) in combination with morphometric characterization. The viviparous nematode was relatively small (total length 102 mm, broadest width 0.6 mm). It had a prominent uterus containing numerous eggs at different embryonation stages, some of which showed fully developed microfilariae. Conclusions Dirofilaria repens was originally reported from Southern Europe and Asia, but during recent decades, it expanded its distribution area northwards, allowing autochthonous transmission to occur in Germany, Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Finland. The present report provides the first description from Denmark of a fully mature female worm in a dog imported from Italy. Known vectors include species of mosquitoes within the genera Aedes , Anopheles Coquillettidia and Culex , which are endemic in Denmark, reflecting the risk of future autochthonous transmission also in Denmark, where climatic conditions now allow larval development in the vectors. Although suspected to be an imported case, it cannot be excluded that the infection was contracted in Denmark.

Background Animal rescue and animal welfare organizations are relocating thousands of dogs per year following natural disasters and in attempts to provide greater adoption opportunities. Many dogs are sourced from the southeastern USA, which historically has a high prevalence rate for many parasites and parasitic diseases. The Colorado Department of Agriculture Pet Animal Care Facilities Act (PACFA) requires animal shelters and animal welfare organizations to report annually a variety of statistics including the numbers of dogs imported into Colorado from out of state. The Companion Animal Parasite Council (CAPC) provides data nationally, down to the state and county level, on a variety of common parasitic and vector borne diseases. These data make it possible to track changes in parasite prevalence over several years. Methods Test results for canine roundworm, hookworm and whipworm were collected from the CAPC maps for 2013–2017. Dog importation data for 2014–2017 was collected from PACFA reports. For evaluation of the statistical significance of prevalence changes when comparing 2013 to 2017, 2 × 2 contingency tables were constructed with both positive and negative test results for each year and the data assessed using Chi-square tests to determine if the 2017 prevalence was significantly different than the 2013 prevalence for roundworm, hookworm and whipworm. Results Significant increases in intestinal nematode prevalence occurred in Colorado from 2013 to 2017. The prevalence of canine roundworm rose 35.60%, the prevalence of canine hookworm rose 137.33% and the prevalence of canine whipworm rose 63.68%. From 2014 to 2017, over 114,000 dogs were transported into Colorado from out-of-state, by more than 130 animal shelters and rescue organizations. Three of the larger organizations reported that the majority of their dogs were obtained from New Mexico, Texas and Oklahoma. Texas and Oklahoma have historically much higher parasite prevalence than Colorado. Conclusions Veterinarians in areas with historically low parasite prevalence where dogs from high parasite prevalence areas are arriving for adoption may need to reevaluate their recommendations regarding fecal examination and deworming frequencies as historic levels of intestinal parasite infection may no longer be accurate assessments of future infection risks.

Many potential owners refused a pet by a UK charity may decide to use these online charities and find that importing a dog comes with fewer hoops to jump through. The last 20 years has seen an insidious eroding of our biosecurity I have not seen a distemper case in over 20 years and I have no wish to see a return to euthanasing litters of puppies just because we are unwilling to protect our island with some common sense policies.

Immature tick identification can be problematic because the defining morphological features of the adult stages may not be present or obvious in the immature stages; however, in the present situation it was possible to reveal the typical hexagonal shape of the basis capitulum, an important feature characteristic of the genus of Rhipicephalus (Fig 2), although clearing in 10 per cent potassium hydroxide for 30 minutes at 30°C was required. Furthermore, unfed R sanguineus larvae can survive for approximately eight months.3 It can not be assumed that because a dog has been treated for ticks before entry to the UK, it will be free of infestation It was possible to identify this case, in part because the large number of tick larvae present were obvious: most cases of immature ticks on pets could be missed because of their small size and short feeding duration. At least one previously recorded case of R sanguineus house infestation was introduced by a dog treated for ticks before importation.4 While treatment before UK entry is an important step in exotic tick and tickborne disease control, it will only be effective in combination with close surveillance, particularly where rescue animals are imported from areas known to be of a higher risk.References 1 ABDULLAH S, HELPS C, TASKER S et al.

[...]rabies may incubate for several weeks or months. [...]if a stray dog were to be captured while incubating rabies it could be given a completely ineffective vaccine and be in the UK in 22 days. [...]in the tragic event of a case of rabies occurring in the UK, there is a strong likelihood that veterinary staff will be exposed before confirmation, a risk for which we are poorly prepared or protected.

Although canine rabies virus variant (CRVV) was successfully eliminated from the United States after approximately 6 decades of vaccination campaigns, licensing requirements, and stray animal control, dogs remain the principal source of human rabies infections worldwide. A rabies vaccination certificate is required for dogs entering the United States from approximately 100 countries with endemic CRVV, including Egypt (1). On February 25, 2019, rabies was diagnosed in a dog imported from Egypt, representing the third canine rabies case imported from Egypt in 4 years (2,3). This dog and 25 others were imported by a pet rescue organization in the Kansas City metropolitan area on January 29. Upon entry into the United States, all 26 dogs had certificates of veterinary inspection, rabies vaccination certificates, and documentation of serologic conversion from a government-affiliated rabies laboratory in Egypt. CDC confirmed that the dog was infected with a CRVV that circulates in Egypt, underscoring the continued risk for CRVV reintroduction and concern regarding the legitimacy of vaccine documentation of dogs imported from countries considered at high risk for CRVV. Vaccination documentation of dogs imported from these countries should be critically evaluated before entry into the United States is permitted, and public health should be consulted upon suspicion of questionable documents.