About Pet Disease Alerts
Pet Disease Alerts is a public charity focused on alerting pet owners to the threat of pet diseases in their local areas. Established by the Companion Animal Parasite Council (CAPC) in 2018, Pet Disease Alerts was founded to directly communicate crucial, time-sensitive information about disease threats, encouraging pet owners to be proactive by visiting their veterinarian and getting their pets tested and protected.
Dogs and cats are increasingly at risk for diseases caused by mosquitoes, ticks and viral and bacterial infections. For almost a decade, CAPC has been mapping, tracking and forecasting diseases to make pet owners aware of the risks where they live—and where they plan to travel with their pets. Nationally, prevalence rates have risen each of the past 5 years and are now up 20% from 2013 levels.
Pet Disease Alert Maps
The Pet Disease Alert Maps show near real-time prevalence of certain bacterial and viral diseases, such as Leptospirosis and canine influenza. For subscribers, the maps will generate alerts when veterinary hospitals in their local areas have had positive test results.
Leptospirosis and canine influenza are easily transmitted from pet to pet, can spread quite rapidly through an area and can be life-threatening in certain pets. In addition, Leptospirosis is zoonotic, meaning it can pass from pets to people. This is why it’s essential for pet owners to have timely and accurate information about disease prevalence where they live or plan to visit.
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30 Day Pet Parasite Forecasts
CAPC is the global expert in forecasting vector-borne diseases of companion animals in the United States. For Pet Disease Alerts, CAPC has partnered with a team of statisticians at Clemson University to develop a statistical methodology, software programming and user interface to forecast four parasitic diseases—heartworm disease, Lyme disease, ehrlichiosis and anaplasmosis—for every county in the United States on a monthly basis.
These diseases are of great concern to pet owners and veterinarians across the country because of how quickly they can spread, moving into areas that previously may not have been affected and putting pets in these areas at high risk for infection. The 30 Day Pet Parasite Forecasts are designed to alert pet owners and veterinarians to ever-changing, concerning trends in parasite infections in local communities and across the country before they occur.
The 30 Day Pet Parasite Forecasts provide an accurate short-term picture of what’s going on across the United States, down to the county level, for each of the four diseases. The Forecasts are generated by a dynamic, data-driven model that analyzes recent trends in disease prevalence rates within every county. Data are collected monthly, so that each Forecast is based on all available data, up to and including the previous month.
Flea Forecasts
Pet Disease Alerts is the first and only organization to forecast flea activity across the United States. Updated daily, the Flea Forecast maps display a national view of flea activity based on environmental conditions.
The Flea Forecasts also offer a unique look at the historical movement of fleas through a rolling 12-month video. This compelling video presents an animation of past flea forecasts maps, showing changes in flea activity over the previous 12-month period.
One of the most common external parasites of dogs and cats, fleas cause discomfort, allergic reactions in pets and are a source of disease in humans. The Flea Forecasts are a strong reminder to pet owners to protect pets year-round with flea control products, limiting infestations on pets and preventing establishment of flea populations in the home.
Special Thanks
The Pet Parasite Forecasts Maps would not have been possible without the contributions of Dr. Chris McMahan, Dr. Stella Self, Dr. Yan Liu, Dr. Robert Lund, and Dr. Jenna Gettings. CAPC continues to improve forecasting capabilities to alert veterinary professionals and pet owners to changing trends in parasite infections for the nation and their local communities before they occur.