Buckinghamshire dog owners warned to remain vigilant as Alabama Rot detected in county

Experts have now confirmed the new cases, which have occurred in Longwick, Buckinghamshire; along with Wimbledon and Richmond in Greater London; and Reading, Berkshire.

Previous cases have been identified across the UK, including areas such as Gloucestershire, Hampshire, Surrey, Derbyshire, Yorkshire, Lancashire, Cornwall, Devon and Staffordshire.

The disease, which originally appeared in the late 1980s, was first detected in the UK in 2012. It affects the kidneys and has a 90 per cent mortality rate.

Research has found in total, the UK has now seen 268 confirmed cases, including 17 since the turn of the year.

David Walker, American, RCVS and EBVS European specialist in small animal internal medicine, leads the team at Anderson Moores and is the UK’s foremost authority on the disease.

He said: “Unfortunately, we have to confirm another five cases of CRGV, taking the 2021 total to 17 cases.

“Sadly, we find ourselves at the time of year when cases are most commonly identified. It is understandably a worrying time for dog owners with regard to CRGV; however, the disease remains rare.

“The disease seems to appear across many counties at this time of year. January and February are typically our highest case number months and, sadly, this year is no different.

“We’re advising dog owners across the country to remain calm but vigilant and seek advice from their local vets if their dog develops unexplained skin lesions.

“If a dog becomes affected by CRGV, the best chance of recovery probably lies with early and intensive veterinary care.

“Treatment primarily revolves around intensive management of the acute kidney injury and is sadly only successful in around 10 per cent of cases.

However, Alabama Rot can be successfully treated if vets are informed early.

Anderson Moores, who specialise in the treatment of Alabama Rot successfully treated a case in a Labroador Retriever.

David continued: "We successfully treated a suspected case of CRGV in a Labrador Retriever. Molly was referred to our internal medicine team due to limb swelling and a deep, painful ulcerative lesion on one of her legs.

“Following four days’ intensive treatment, her condition started to improve and we began to cautiously hope she would survive the disease.

“Molly continued to slowly improve and, after two nerve-wracking weeks, she was discharged to continue her recovery at home.

“Recovery for patients such as Molly is often prolonged but she has continued to do well.

“Sadly, stories such as Molly’s are relatively rare, with CRGV remaining a devastating disease, without a known cause or treatment. The disease has taken away many beloved dogs from their families.”

To find out more about CRGV, visit https://www.andersonmoores.com/owner/CRGV.php or search for Anderson Moores Veterinary Specialists on social media.