How do you protect against a threat that is almost impossible to see with the naked eye? With climate change aiding the spread of harmful and disease-carrying parasites around the world, that’s a question Europe’s pet owners will increasingly be asking.
Parasites, including various species of fleas, ticks, and worms, are the often-unseen challenges to our pet’s health and welfare – yet too many pets remain vulnerable and exposed.
As prevention is always better than cure, pet owners must take stronger measures today to safeguard both their pet’s and their own health and welfare. Yet, parasites need not be a threat we are defenceless against, as a range of tools exist that pet owners can use today, alongside veterinary guidance and care.
While it is tempting to believe that parasites are already under control, and therefore not a priority for owners, they nonetheless hold the potential to inflict harmful and costly diseases on cats and dogs.
And at the same time, a range of studies show that pet owners across Europe are not taking the best measures needed to prevent the threat of parasitic infection.
Surveys of dog and cat owners in France, for example, show that the average compliance with recommended deworming practices is inadequate, standing at just six percent (1). Likewise, EU studies show that at least 50 percent (2) of cats test positive for at least one internal or external parasites, while in the UK, 1 in 7 (3) dogs may have fleas, a common parasite which can cause skin infections.
And yet, even when owners are employing some measures, including deworming, studies (4) also show they are too infrequent, or measures are being deployed incorrectly, doing little to reduce the threat of parasites.
With parasites responsible for a host of harmful illnesses and diseases, some of which can jump to humans, pet owners must ensure that they are taking all necessary preventative measures to stop the spread of parasites.
Preventing this spread is likewise becoming more important in an ever-connected world. On top of the international pet trade and the broader movement of pets and people, climate change is also increasingly acting as the fuel that is accelerating the further spread of many harmful parasites.
For example, the European Commission has highlighted (5) that the illegal pet trade is contributing to the rising threat of parasites, with many of these animals not receiving the proper protections against parasites. The legal relocation (6) of dogs is likewise hastening the spread of exotic infections into new areas.
The international movement of pets, when paired with climate change, is forming a cocktail of risks that is aiding the ability of parasites to arrive and then thrive in new areas. Climate change is therefore transforming many major parasites into real, and no longer just theoretical, threats to public health.
For example, Leishmaniosis, a parasitic disease carried by sandflies and once only found in tropical regions of the world, could become increasingly common (7) in Northern and Eastern Europe under changing climatic conditions. Likewise, heartworm has also rapidly risen to become a key threat to pets across Eastern Europe, similarly aided by a changing climate.
As a result, despite the historical success of parasite control, interventions to reduce the spread of parasites will become increasingly important to protect both pet and human health throughout Europe amidst a changing climate.
Thankfully, despite their size and growing prevalence, parasites are not an impossible challenge for owners to deal with. Preventative measures, including routine testing of pets for parasites and improved hygiene, must be used by owners alongside treatments such as deworming and flea treatments. These treatments, and how to use them responsibly, will be essential for owners to become acquainted with as parasite threats are on the rise.
Likewise, ongoing efforts by governments and health agencies to improve the traceability and monitoring of the international movement and trade of pets will also go far in building an effective buffer against the spread of parasites. This is particularly important since many of the major parasites do not have effective preventative treatments.
Ultimately, as parasite control has historically been so effective in Europe, many no longer think it is necessary. But the reality is that changing conditions means these risks to pets, and the households they live in, are on the rise once again.
By following expert guidance, and with greater measures to improve the traceability of the international movement and trade of pets, owners, veterinarians, and policymakers alike can make progress in addressing this hidden threat to human and animal health.
(1) https://parasitesandvectors.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13071-019-3712-4
(2) https://parasitesandvectors.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1756-3305-7-291
(3) https://parasitesandvectors.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13071-019-3326-x
(4) https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13071-018-3149-1
(5) https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM:2023:769:FIN
(6) https://bvajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/vetr.2996
(7) https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-13822-1
Image par HANSUAN FABREGAS de Pixabay