Exotic Worms

There is a real risk of exotic worms establishing in the UK as their progression can easily go under the radar. Increased pet travel abroad and the increased importation of rescue dogs results in increased numbers of exotic worms entering the UK.

The ease of pet travel means many more people take their dogs on holiday with them. Dogs rescued from abroad are often street dogs who are at much higher risk of being infected with parasites. This is fuelled by climate change which means that many of the vectors such as ticks, mosquitoes and fruit flies which wouldn’t normally survive in the UK, can also now establish themselves meaning that an infected dog can more easily transfer infection to a local dog that hasn’t travelled abroad.

There are 5 worms of interest:

Dirofilaria Immitis or the heart worm causes serious disease in dogs as it lives in the heart chambers or blood vessels. It is endemic across much of Europe; it can infect humans but fortunately the monthly spot on treatments used in the UK to prevent lungworm will also prevent heart worm so it’s very important to ensure your pet is up to date whilst travelling. At the moment, it is thought that it isn’t quite warm enough to become endemic in the UK.

Echinococcus Multicularis is a type of tapeworm which doesn’t cause serious disease in dogs, but it is a very serious zoonotic disease (resulting in masses growing on the liver) and is the main reason why dogs are given a wormer before admission back into the UK after travelling.

Dirofilaria Repens is very hard to test for and causes a significant zoonosis. It lives in skin nodules and is spread between dogs via infected mosquitoes so it would be easy for it to establish in the UK. These mosquitoes can then spread the infection to humans. The easiest way to diagnose it is to look at skin nodules- so if your dog develops unusual skin masses following a trip it is essential these are examined by a vet rapidly as this will stop exposure of a UK mosquito to in infected dog. Again, treating your dog with a monthly spot on whilst abroad should prevent exposure.

Thelaziid Callipaeda or the eye worm in transmitted by fruit flies so there is a high risk of it establishing in the UK. It can also cause disease in humans. It lives in and around the eye and causes conjunctivitis, eye ulcers and blindness. Fruit flies are now endemic in the southern UK due to climate change so it would be easy for UK fruit flies to become infected via a dog with ocular symptoms. Any dog returning to the UK with an eye infection or discharge should be taken to the vets straight away for a thorough eye examination to identify the presence of any worms

Finally, Linguatula Serrata or the tongue worm. This lives around the nose and throat of infected dogs (it can be transferred to humans especially with facial snuggling!) and eggs of the worm are shed in nasal mucus or can be swallowed and passed in faeces. The main symptoms are sneezing, runny nose or coughing and worms can be sneezed or coughed up. If you’re returning from holiday and your dog is displaying respiratory signs, then it is a possible cause. Fast diagnosis and treatment of infected dogs are essential to reduce the risk of spread in the UK.

Surveillance is essential for limiting the spread of these exotic worms in the UK. Use veterinary topical products whilst abroad to protect your dog and treatment with wormer before entry back into the UK. Check your dog for ticks whilst away and make sure any new health issues seem after a trip are checked rapidly with your vet.