RVN issues warning as mystery illness leaves dogs unwell 

A locum vet nurse has urged dog owners in the north-east to stay away from the coast after a mystery illness left dozens of dogs unwell over one weekend.

RVN and Yorkshire Coast Pet Care owner Brogan Proud has warned dog owners to be careful when visiting the beach after practices saw a number of dogs presenting with the same symptoms of vomiting and diarrhoea across the region in the same weekend.

Spike

Mrs Proud detailed how practices along the north-east North Sea coast had seen a spike in dogs exhibiting the clinical signs just hours after coming off of beaches between Scarborough and Redcar. One practice had 20 dogs over a weekend.

Speaking to Vet Times, the locum vet nurse said Defra had been made aware of the situation and was investigating. A spokesman for for the University of Liverpool’s Small Animal Veterinary Surveillance Network-Agile team said it was aware of the matter.

Signs

Mrs Proud said: “The dogs have walked from the beach and within so many hours there is vomiting and diarrhoea. They had been perfectly fine before, they weren’t eating anything in particular, they haven’t drank seawater, it’s the fact that vomiting and diarrhoea has been consistent throughout all of them.

“By the looks of it, samples haven’t been sent off because these dogs are recovering fairly quickly. I know that the environmental agencies will be looking to sample the water, sand and seaweed.

“I was the first person from the vet profession to speak with Defra about this. Personally, until the local authorities have got to the bottom of it, I would not recommend taking pets on the beach for the foreseeable future.”