This is indeed a horrible, and usually fatal disease Clumsy.
They first discovered it here about 4 years ago I believe, but they still don't know enough about it. to stop it.
It seems to be more prevalent in areas of forest for some reason.

There doesn't seem to be any mention of how or where this horrible disease is contracted, but I sincerely hope it doesn't spread.

I checked straight away because we are out with Murphy in the woods most days but luckily there has never been a case here in NL.

I hope there never is Cass.

A MYSTERIOUS and deadly disease of dogs has claimed a victim in the Malvern area.

But the vet who examined the animal said that although dog owners should remain vigilant, they should not panic.

Animal heath specialists announced this week that eight new cases of Alabama Rot, which kills nine out of ten dogs that contract it, have just been detected in the UK - one of them in Malvern.

The Malvern dog was examined by Peter Creber of the Avenue Veterinary Centre, who recognised the possible cause and sent samples off to the Anderson Moores Veterinary Specialists, the UK’s leading expert on the condition, which confirmed the diagnosis.


Mr Creber said: "It's a serious disease, and in this case the dog died, to the great distress of its owners, but I would stress there have been about 20 cases a year since 2012, in a country with some eight million dogs.

"One of the problems is that right now no-one knows what causes it, whether it's an infectious agent such as a virus or bacterium, or whether there's some other cause.

The disease, known scientifically as Cutaneous and Renal Glomerular Vasculopathy, or CRGV, causes lesions on the dog's skin and occasionally in the mouth, which can look like bites, sores, wounds or stings.

However, the real damage is done to the animal's kidneys, where the disease causes tiny clots to form in the blood vessels, which block them and lead to kidney failure.

Mr Creber said: "Since nothing is known about how the disease is caused, it's hard to give advice about how to avoid it.

"Be vigilant: if your dog is suffering a lesion or sore, take it to the vet, but they vast majority of them will be ordinary lesions that are easily treated and not a problem. There is no need to panic.

"The family that owned the dog have several other dogs and none of them are affected. Other owners have said they are avoiding the places where that family walks its dogs, but we simply do not know how Alabama Rot is caused or transmitted."