Expert group to surveil new and emerging small animal disease threats
The group is currently working in collaboration with ESCAPP on the surveillance of exotic worms or worm-like parasites.
A new Small Animal Expert Group has been established by the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) to surveil new or re-emerging threats for small animal diseases.
Led by veterinary epidemiologist Dr Gillian Diesel, the group was formed at the beginning of 2022, comprising members of the APHA's One Health Team and the Surveillance, Epidemiology and Data Analysis team.
Other non-APHA members of the group include BSAVA, SAVSNET, VetCompass, Dogs Trust, Cats Protection, RSPCA, SSPCA and the VMD.
Currently the group is working in collaboration with ESCCAP on the surveillance of exotic worms or worm-like parasites, and the APHA is offering free morphological identification of these worms where they are suspected.
The group is also keen to connect with veterinary practices to which they can send any information about the project and act as a contact point for any unusual cases where a vet suspects a new or re-emerging threat.
Dr Diesel said: “For many years, APHA has had species expert groups for livestock and wildlife which sit within our Surveillance Intelligence Unit and form integral parts of the scanning surveillance network in England and Wales. I have now been able to set up the small animal group to provide the same function for small animals.
“Scanning surveillance and the need to monitor diseases in animal populations is of critical importance for the government in order to detect new and re-emerging threats and protect animal and human health. These threats can include notifiable diseases, new pathogens or new strains of a known disease, a change in the patterns of an endemic disease or resistance to a veterinary medicine.”
For more information about the project, visit defra.gov.uk
Companies marketing medicines for small pets exempt from authorisation must submit their annual return to the Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) by 30 November 2026.
