Leishmania:The chance of a dog catching Leishmania in Spain is extremely high, many veterinary surgeons put it as high as 30 to 35 percent. In reality, the figure is much higher because there are many stray dogs with the disease and the figure given applies only to dogs registered with a veterinary surgeon. It is an incurable disease and one that has been widely publicised here in Spain yet many people hear of it for the first time when they arrive in Spain from other parts of Europe. However, there are still many dog owners who are not aware of this disease.

Any dog can catch Leishmania but there is evidence to indicate that shorthaired dogs are more susceptible as obviously the offending mosquito can more easily penetrate the skin. Bear in mind two very important facts: there is no cure and there is no vaccination against the disease. However there are treatments which can afford an affected dog long periods of remission, often reminiscent of a cure. A dog with Leishmania in a mild degree can live to a very ripe old age.

 What are the symptoms?  Watch out for prolonged nail growth, ulceration of the ear tips, thick dandruff, bald patches on the skin, sunglasses effect around the eyes, getting thin although eating well (in this latter case, check firstly for worms), whiteness of the cornea of the eyes. These are all warning signs that your dog could have Leishmania.  The only way to make absolutely sure is to visit your vet who will analyse a blood sample and you will have the results within a day or so. It is indeed a relief when the results prove negative. We all want to care for our dogs to the best of our ability and care means preventing your dog from getting this ultimately fatal disease and it can certainly be prevented. Keeping your dog indoors after dark and if temperatures are above 20 Celsius degrees can help.

There is a very special insect repellent collar called Scalibor that is highly recommended by all vets, which will protect your dog from bites from this mosquito and also from fleas and ticks and, unlike the tick and flea collar, lasts for 6 months as opposed to 3 months.  There is also a lotion called X Spot which comes in ampulets and as an alternative to the Scalibur collar should be applied to the back of the neck and rump of your dog. This will take either one or two ampulets, depending on the size of your dog. An extra protection is to use those small mosquito gadgets sold in many shops that use tables or liquid and plug into electricity points.  This all sounds very extreme but, with something as serious as this, it is necessary to take extreme measures.

There are also those of us who have so many dogs that it would be impossible for them all to be indoors after dusk but X Spot and Scalibor collars will protect your dogs from bites if they live outside in the open.