Rat Lungworm In Dogs

[judy69]

Ok so I saw the story on Sunday Night on 7 last night about the 2 babies and teenager that got sick with rat lungworm from coming into contact / eating snails or slugs. If this can be passed onto humans then I'm presuming that dogs and cats can get it also. So my question is how do I stop my dog from playing with or eating snails. We have heaps of them in our backyard at the moment. I don't want to put snail bait dowm so what else can I do. I would hate for him to get sick.

Any suggestions!!!

[Guest Ams]

According to this article it is extremely rare for dogs to become infected.

http://ses.library.usyd.edu.au/bitstream/2123/2077/4/02whole.pdf

[~Anne~]

I was contmplating the same thing judy after seeing the story. I was planning on doing some research.

Edited November 14, 2011 by ~Anne~

[Frodo's mum]

it was very scary...who would have thought a slug/snail could do such terrible damage

those poor people

[Staff'n'Toller]

I had a phone call about that today. A client was worried as their dog licks snail slime off the concrete.

After some research I found that it's a roundworm that's killed using a common wormer for humans. Most peoples immune system will kill the larvae. Contracting meningitis from it is quite rare. Reported cases were about 10 in the last 50 years although they are doing a study on that now.

A few sites seem to concur with this:

Angiostrongyliasis The rat lung worm, Angiostrongylus costaricensis, is the cause of abdominal angiostrongyliasis, and its cousin, Angiostrongylus cantonensis, as well as the most common cause of eosinophilic meningitis (inflammation of the spinal cord coverings) in humans. It occurs in Costa Rica and other Central American countries, as well as Southeast Asia, and the Pacific basin and the Caribbean. Human infection occurs through ingestion of larvae present in snails or slugs; or transport hosts, such as freshwater prawns, frogs, or fish; or vegetable produce contaminated by either. The ingested larvae migrate to the mesenteric arteries, causing inflammation resulting in abdominal pain and fever that can mimic appendicitis. Larvae that travel to the brain can cause eosinphilic meningoencephalitis (inflammation of the brain). Treatment is with albendazole and corticosteroids.

http://www.travmed.com/health_guide/ch10.htm

Beware of scare-mongering on the TV.

[judy69]

well I guess I will just keep an eye on Bud and make sure he leaves the snails alone.

I feel sorry for the people that were affected by this on the story last night.

[luvsdogs]

well I guess I will just keep an eye on Bud and make sure he leaves the snails alone.

I feel sorry for the people that were affected by this on the story last night.

Today Tonight did a follow up story on a couple of dogs that were affected. They both have muscle wastage but otherwise seem to be ok.

As for us it said to make sure you wash all salad items thoroughly. Could be a bit of a worry eating out.

Edited November 14, 2011 by luvsdogs

[Shazzapug]

Tonight they said it is moving down the east coast, whether that means it is in WA I dont know. Cane toads are on the move too....good grief, all these killer things in our yards. I dont have toddlers anymore, thank Dog, but now the worry is with our furkids.

[nabs]

I lost a 4 month old puppy to this horrid parasite in 1989 it was so very rare. got a shock to see it on the Tv last night.

[Shazzapug]

I lost a 4 month old puppy to this horrid parasite in 1989 it was so very rare. got a shock to see it on the Tv last night.

Aww so sad...it has taken children to die for this to be made aware to dog owners...and to see examples that have survived it tonight on the report.

[nabs]

Our girl fought for two weeks. Diagnosed with a milogram it travelled up to her brain then down her spine she was totally paralysed so we gave her her wings.

[Clyde]

I collect snails all the time for the ducks

[CavsRcute]

I had a phone call about that today. A client was worried as their dog licks snail slime off the concrete.

After some research I found that it's a roundworm that's killed using a common wormer for humans. Most peoples immune system will kill the larvae. Contracting meningitis from it is quite rare. Reported cases were about 10 in the last 50 years although they are doing a study on that now.

A few sites seem to concur with this:

Angiostrongyliasis The rat lung worm, Angiostrongylus costaricensis, is the cause of abdominal angiostrongyliasis, and its cousin, Angiostrongylus cantonensis, as well as the most common cause of eosinophilic meningitis (inflammation of the spinal cord coverings) in humans. It occurs in Costa Rica and other Central American countries, as well as Southeast Asia, and the Pacific basin and the Caribbean. Human infection occurs through ingestion of larvae present in snails or slugs; or transport hosts, such as freshwater prawns, frogs, or fish; or vegetable produce contaminated by either. The ingested larvae migrate to the mesenteric arteries, causing inflammation resulting in abdominal pain and fever that can mimic appendicitis. Larvae that travel to the brain can cause eosinphilic meningoencephalitis (inflammation of the brain). Treatment is with albendazole and corticosteroids.

http://www.travmed.com/health_guide/ch10.htm

Beware of scare-mongering on the TV.

Why would you say this is scare mongering?

I know the teenager and his mother and it is real enough.

It has been the most devastating 18 months of this family's life

[judy69]

I missed the follow up story on Today Tonight last night.

It sure is a scary thing. I'm not sure if it's in WA or not either but I would rather be on the safe side and try and get Bud to leave the snails alone. The first thing he did this morning when he went outside was find a snail on the grass and start playing with and picking it up. He soon got told off. I don't think he really knew what was going on as he just looked at me with his head tilted to the side as if to say "why cant I play with it".

[trinabean]

Judy my pup had a bit of a fascination for snails too. I removed countless snails from his mouth the in the first few months we had him.

One thing we do to keep the snail numbers down is put on a 'happy hour' for them. We put down beer traps (just some beer in a shallow container/dish) at night and pick them up in the morning. Our dog is inside overnight so he can't access them.

The snails (and some slugs) are attracted to the beer and end up falling in and drowning. They die happy, and there are a lot less of them for Bruno to munch on.

[judy69]

Judy my pup had a bit of a fascination for snails too. I removed countless snails from his mouth the in the first few months we had him.

One thing we do to keep the snail numbers down is put on a 'happy hour' for them. We put down beer traps (just some beer in a shallow container/dish) at night and pick them up in the morning. Our dog is inside overnight so he can't access them.

The snails (and some slugs) are attracted to the beer and end up falling in and drowning. They die happy, and there are a lot less of them for Bruno to munch on.

Thanks trinabean might have to give this ago

[Miss Danni]

Rat Lungworm is a horrible disease in dogs, just like people.

Some months ago, I emailed Bayer to see if Advocate was effective against Rat Lungworm and they advised me that, currently, there is no wormer that will kill Rat Lungworm in dogs.

So be vigilant is all I can say.

[Miss Danni]

Here is the response from Bayer:

Dear Kim,

I am sorry to advise that the short answer to your question is "no" - Advocate does not have any registered claims for use on dogs/puppies for the treatment or prevention of Rat Lungworm (Angiostrongylus cantonensis).

This is a very interesting enquiry because the recognition of this parasite as a possible cause of neurological disease in Australian dogs appears to have increased in profile during recent years. I am aware of some recent research conducted out of the University of Sydney towards development of a reliable diagnostic test.

Please let me know if you have any other questions as I would be happy to assist if possible.

Best Regards

Warwick Smith BVSc MVPHMgt

[Staff'n'Toller]

I had a phone call about that today. A client was worried as their dog licks snail slime off the concrete.

After some research I found that it's a roundworm that's killed using a common wormer for humans. Most peoples immune system will kill the larvae. Contracting meningitis from it is quite rare. Reported cases were about 10 in the last 50 years although they are doing a study on that now.

A few sites seem to concur with this:

Angiostrongyliasis The rat lung worm, Angiostrongylus costaricensis, is the cause of abdominal angiostrongyliasis, and its cousin, Angiostrongylus cantonensis, as well as the most common cause of eosinophilic meningitis (inflammation of the spinal cord coverings) in humans. It occurs in Costa Rica and other Central American countries, as well as Southeast Asia, and the Pacific basin and the Caribbean. Human infection occurs through ingestion of larvae present in snails or slugs; or transport hosts, such as freshwater prawns, frogs, or fish; or vegetable produce contaminated by either. The ingested larvae migrate to the mesenteric arteries, causing inflammation resulting in abdominal pain and fever that can mimic appendicitis. Larvae that travel to the brain can cause eosinphilic meningoencephalitis (inflammation of the brain). Treatment is with albendazole and corticosteroids.

http://www.travmed.com/health_guide/ch10.htm

Beware of scare-mongering on the TV.

Why would you say this is scare mongering?

I know the teenager and his mother and it is real enough.

It has been the most devastating 18 months of this family's life

Because it's very rare- 10 cases in 50 years makes it so.

I said beware of scare mongering because the parasite does not automatically cause meningitis, it causes meningitis in some cases. The amount of dogs that like to eat snails is huge and in 10 years of nursing I've never seen a dog with meningitis that was caused by this worm. We would also hear from the emergency centres if there was a huge rise.

I just meant people shouldn't freak out every time they see a snail in their dog's mouth.

Sorry to your friend.

[Inevitablue]

Reviving this old thread.

One of our dogs is suspected of having this. She is currently in a critical condition suffering from the neurological symptoms.

Has there been any further research that anyone has heard of, or any other info. Several dogs have died in the area in recent weeks with the exact same symptoms as our young bitch.