From last Jan 1st, Vets have an additional obligation: reporting RIVIA animals that suffer certain diseases. These are notifiable diseases.
Orden 3/2016 from March 4th 2016, says we have to let the animal database know about every individual that has been diagnosed. Because of some technical problems, this 2016 law is going to be applied from zero this year, since RIVIA website is finally ready for this purpose.
The goal of this new obligation is to create a census of affected animals in order to be able to prevent and control some of these epizootic diseases (that is, diseases that may be transmitted from animals to people and vice versa). So far, the exact number of affected animals was a mystery. Knowing the exact number is necessary for prevention.
We are talking of some infectious and parasitic diseases that can be transmitted to people, and the Vet is obliged to notify them to RIVIA, even if the owner disagrees. LOPD (Spanish Data Protection Act), establishes notifiable diseases as an exception, so letting authorities know about the ill individuals is not breaking LOPD in any way.
The new regulation only affects those cases diagnosed after Jan 1st 2018. We just notify new cases and relapses.
Here is the list:
- Rabies. It affects dogs, cats and ferrets. Transmission is via saliva. Prevention consists on mandatory vaccination.
- Leishmaniasis. It affects dogs. It’s a vector borne disease, transmitted by insects (mosquitoes). Prevention consists on vaccination and external mosquito repellents (collars, spot-on, etc).
- Toxoplasmosis. It affects dogs and cats. Transmission can happen for contacting contaminated cat faeces, but also by eating meat or sausages not enough cooked, or not enough washed vegetables (this is the most common way of transmission, so remember you pregnant women: a salad is more dangerous than a cat). Prevention consists on hygienic measures.
- Dirofilariosis (heartworm). It affects dogs. Another vector borne disease. Prevention consists on external mosquito repellents and special internal antiparasitic treatments.
- Leptospirosis. It affects dogs. It’s transmitted by contaminated dogs or rodents urine. Prevention consists on vaccination.
- Borreliosis (Lyme’s disease). It affects dogs and cats. Vector borne disease transmitted by some species of ticks. Prevention consists on external antiparasitic treatments.
- Hepatozoonosis. It affects dogs. Transmission by ticks, when the dog eats them accidentally when self-cleaning. Prevention consists on external antiparasitic treatments.
- Ehrlichiosis-babesiosis-rickettsiosis. They affect dogs and are vector borne diseases. Prevention consists on external antiparasitic treatments, and in case of Babesiosis, there is a vaccine (not very commonly used in this area since the tick that transmits this disease lives at the Northern Spain, not here).
So, there is a prevention for all these epizootic diseases, by using vaccines and antiparasitic treatments. Your Vet will advise you about the best prevention in every case, since all the antiparasitic medicines are not valid for every case.
Liliana Aldeguer Cerdán col 793
English translation by Sergio Reina Esteban col 747.
