Alabama Rot alert to dog lovers
MUCH-LOVED FAMILY PET KILLED BY TERRIFYING CONDITION
DEADLY dog disease Alabama Rot has claimed the life of yet another muchloved family pet.
Bought as a birthday present for fiveyear-old May Diehl, Pearl quickly became part of the family.
But just 18 months on, dad Grant and his heartbroken family have had to say their final goodbyes to her as Alabama Rot claimed the Labrador.
Grant, from Sacriston, County Durham, is now urging others to be vigilant for signs of the killer condition.
He said: “Pearl was going to be May’s friend to take her through junior school.
“She was going to be there for her for the next 10 years. They were best pals – we have all lost a member of the family.
“If you notice something strange about your dog, take them to the vet and ask if it could be Alabama Rot. I would hate for anyone else to go through this.”
Alabama Rot was first found in Britain in 2012, and it is believed more than 100 dogs have since died of it.
The disease, officially called cutaneous and renal glomerular vasculopathy, can affect all breeds, and its cause is still unknown. Grant, who used to
We only took her in for a limp, and she had to be put down. Everyone is so sad. Grant Diehl
take 12-year-old Labrador Amber and Pearl for daily walks in Sacriston Wood, first noticed Pearl was limping and struggling to put weight on her right front leg on Wednesday, January 24.
She was taken to Vets4Pets in Framwellgate Moor on the Friday with a swollen toe and issued with a course of antibiotics.
It was not until the following Monday when X-rays confirmed the cause of Pearl’s suffering was not a fracture.
Grant, 36, said: “She could not really put any weight down on her right leg, and she would not get out of bed.
“There were no skin lesions which is usually the first sign of Alabama Rot.
“Even on the Monday morning, I was expecting to pick her up later that day.
“It was that afternoon they said her kidneys were not functioning as they should be.”
Once suspicions of Alabama Rot were raised, Pearl was moved for more specialist treatment at Wear Referrals in Bradbury.
But such was the spread of the disease, vets were left with no choice but to put the Labrador down last Wednesday morning.
Grant added: “We only took her in for a limp, and she had to be put down.
“Everyone is so sad, I think it’s hit me the most because looking after our dogs was my thing in the house. “The house is so quiet now. Amber just plods along, but Pearl was such a bundle of energy. “You would always know she was about. She was a big part of our family.” Typically, the first sign of Alabama Rot is often a sore on the dog’s skin. The skin can become red, while the sore can look like an open ulcer. Initial symptoms can easily be mistaken for a number of less serious conditions but within days, dogs begin to show signs of kidney failure. Other symptoms can include extreme tiredness, vomiting, diarrhoea and a loss of appetite. While the cause of the disease is unknown, vets advise owners to bathe dogs after walks, or wash any areas that are wet or muddy. A case of Alabama Rot was confirmed in Sacriston in December last year, and Grant says owners in the area are now scared to walk their pets away from paths through fear of the killer disease. He added: “Amber was walked the same time as Pearl – the vet told us we had just been really really unlucky. “When you go online, most cases are reported from November through to April. “Does that mean don’t walk your dog in the woods during this time? If I got another dog, would the same happen again? “Now, we have people in the area scared to walk their dogs in the wood.”