Dog disease which can cause meningitis caught by three Brits for first time - warning issued

Officials say infections are not usually fatal but can severely affect people with weakened immune systems, pregnant women and young children.

A total of 43 infected dogs were found in Britain in the first three months of this year - twice as many as in the same period the previous year.

Almost half of the infected cases were in animals adopted by UK owners through organisations which specialise in rehoming dogs from overseas, specifically from Romania.

In 2020, more than 29,000 dogs were imported to the UK from Romania.

According to a report published by the Government’s Human Animal Infections and Risk Surveillance group, Brucella canis is caused by bacteria spread in fluids linked to breeding and dogs giving birth, with breeders and vets are most at risk of being infected.

Anybody bringing dogs over to the UK should test for the disease before travelling, experts suggest.

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Humans with the disease may not experience symptoms but if they do, it can include fever, headache, tiredness, muscle pains and weight loss.

More serious cases cause cause arthritis, meningitis and septicaemia.

Infected dogs could experience reproductive failure, lameness and back or joint pain.

The report says: "Euthanasia of infected dogs is considered the only way to completely remove the risk of future onward transmission."

Owners and individual vets will ultimately decide whether the dog is put down.

The report added: "If an infected animal is not euthanised, the dog may be neutered and concurrently treated with a course of antimicrobials."

Wendi Shepherd, head of emerging infections and zoonoses at the UK Health Security Agency, said: “We have seen a small number of cases of Brucella canis in people in the UK this year.

“However, the risk to the general public in the UK is very low and the risk to people who have had close contact with an infected dog is low.

"From the small number of cases of the infection that have been reported in humans worldwide, the infection is usually mild, but people who have weakened immune systems, are pregnant, or are young children may be more likely to experience more serious infection.”