Your Pets Aren't Going to Like Global Warming, Either: Infectious Diseases Likely to Rise
photo: Matthias Zirngibl via flickr
Most of the time when it comes to climate change's impact on animals the focus is on endangered species, changes in habitat of more common animals, the spread of invasive species. But new research shows that our family pets may also face some problems:New Scientist reports that because of increasing temperatures in Europe, pets could become more exposed to infectious diseases spread by ticks, mosquitoes and fleas.
The European dog tick is transmitting a malaria-like disease, canine babesiosis, into countries where it was once rare including Belgium, Germany, Poland and the Netherlands. Meanwhile, Ixodes ticks are living at greater densities across Europe, increasing their risk of passing tick-borne encephalitis to horses and dogs.
Cat flea typhus, still a rare disease, may also become more common in both cats and dogs, according to Frederic Beugnet of Merial Animal Health in Lyon, France.
via: New Scientist
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