Companion animal disease surveillance: A new solution to an old problem?

Infectious disease surveillance in companion animals has a long history. However, it has mostly taken the form of ad hoc surveys, or has focused on adverse reactions to pharmaceuticals. In 2006 a Blue Ribbon Panel was convened by the U.S. White House Office of Science and Technology Policy to discuss the potential utility of a national companion animal health surveillance system. Such a system could provide fundamental information about disease occurrence, transmission and risk factors; and could facilitate industry-supported pharmaco-epidemiological studies and post-market surveillance.Disease WatchDog, a prospective national disease surveillance project, was officially launched in January 2010 to capture data on diseases in dogs and cats throughout Australia. Participation is encouraged by providing registrants real-time disease maps and material for improved communication between veterinarians and clients.From January to mid-November 2010, an estimated 31% of veterinary clinics Australia-wide joined the project. Over 1300 disease cases – including Canine Parvovirus (CPV), Canine Distemper, Canine Hepatitis, Feline Calicivirus, Feline Herpesvirus, and Tick Paralysis – were reported. In New South Wales alone, 552 CPV cases in dogs were reported from 89 postcode locations. New South Wales data was scanned using the space–time permutation test. Up to 24 clusters (P < 0.01) were identified, occurring in all months except March. The greatest number of clusters (n = 6) were identified in April. The most likely cluster was identified in western Sydney, where 36 cases of CPV were reported from a postcode in February. Although the project is still in its infancy, already new information on disease distribution has been produced. Disease information generated could facilitate targeted control and prevention programs.

► We describe a new disease surveillance system for dog and cat diseases in Australia.
► Surveillance data is providing new insights into disease distributions.
► Within 10 months of launch, nearly 1/3 of veterinary practices were participating.
► Ability of users to produce disease maps a likely explanation of the system’s success.