'It doesn't take long before it's too late': 6 cases of flesh-eating disease found in Vancouver Island dogs
Six cases of a rare and often fatal flesh-eating disease have been detected in dogs on Vancouver Island in recent months.
Victoria Humane Society executive director Penny Stone says the high number of cases on the island is "very concerning."
All of the cases have been found in the Mid-Island region, with no cases detected yet on the South Island, according to Stone.
Still, the humane society director is warning all dog owners on the island to be on the lookout for the disease, known as necrotizing fasciitis.
"Once your dog has it, it doesn’t take long before it's too late to save your dog," Stone said Tuesday.
"This is the kind of thing you need to take in right away."
Humans cannot contract the disease from dogs, Stone said, urging dog owners to check their pets for blisters, sore limbs or skin lesions regularly.
Necrotizing fasciitis can affect skin, underlying fat, and fascia – the connective tissue that surrounds muscles – according to the Central Island Veterinary Emergency Hospital, which issued a warning about the disease earlier this month.
The illness can infect a pet through punctures or skin infections, and it does not always seems like an obvious wound, the CIVEH said.
Some skin discolouration may occur, and animals with the disease generally develop a fever, veterinarians say.
Treatment for the disease can require surgery to remove infected tissue or limbs.
With files from CTV News Vancouver Island's Adam Chan
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Bodies found by U.S. authorities searching for missing B.C. kayakers
United States authorities who have been searching for a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia since the weekend have recovered two bodies in the nearby San Juan Islands of Washington state.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
Saskatchewan households will continue to receive carbon tax rebate: Trudeau
Households in Saskatchewan will continue to receive Canada Carbon Rebate payments, despite the province refusing to remit the federal carbon price on natural gas, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday.
'It's just so hard to let it go': Umar Zameer still haunted by death of Toronto police officer
'We hoped for this day, but we were scared that it would not never ever come because it took so long.' That’s what Umar Zameer, the man recently acquitted in the death of a Toronto police officer, told CTV News Toronto in a sit-down interview on Tuesday.
Senate expenses climbed to $7.2 million in 2023, up nearly 30%
Senators in Canada claimed $7.2 million in expenses in 2023, a nearly 30 per cent increase over the previous year.
Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko won't play in Game 2
The Vancouver Canucks will be without all-star goalie Thatcher Demko when they face the Nashville Predators in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series.
Pedestrian, baby injured after stroller struck and dragged by vehicle in Squamish, B.C.
Police say a baby and a pedestrian suffered non-life-threatening injuries after a vehicle struck a baby stroller and dragged it for two blocks before stopping in Squamish, B.C.