Brucella Canis Guidance
Information for dog owners about canine brucellosis and our policy for imported dogs.
What is Brucella?
Canine brucellosis is an infectious disease caused by a bacterium called Brucella canis.
Brucella is zoonotic, which means that it can occasionally spread from dogs to people. Transmission from dogs to humans is rare, but infection can be serious, particularly for young children, older people, pregnant people and anyone who is immunocompromised.
Where is canine brucellosis found?
Canine brucellosis is most commonly reported in Eastern and Central Europe, particularly Romania, although cases have also been reported elsewhere in Europe. See the map below.
In the UK, reported cases have involved dogs that have:
- Been imported from another country
- Mated with an imported dog
- Had contact with the birthing products of an imported dog
- Been born to an imported dog
For this reason, it is particularly important that owners of imported dogs are aware of the disease.
Our Brucella policy
To help protect our patients, clients and veterinary team, we ask owners to follow the guidelines below:
- Please tell us if your dog was imported. Please let our team know if your dog originated from outside the UK.
- We recommend that all imported dogs from high risk areas are tested for Brucella canis 3 months post entering the UK
- If your dog has already been tested, we are happy to accept appropriate certification for a Brucella test performed more than three months after the date of import.
Why the 3-month window matters
Incubation period: Testing too early (such as right before or immediately upon import) can result in a false-negative test because the bacteria have not triggered a strong enough antibody response yet.
Travel or import exposure: If a dog was exposed to the bacteria during transport or shortly before entering the country, the 90-day rule ensures enough time has passed for the infection to show up.
Reliability of results: Waiting 3 months and using official serological tests (like SAT and iELISA) recommended by the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) gives vets accurate confirmation of the dog’s true infection status.
What happens if a dog tests positive?
Canine brucellosis is a notifiable disease in the UK. A positive test must therefore be reported to the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA).
Unfortunately, there is no treatment that can reliably eliminate Brucella from an infected dog.
Antibiotics may be used for prolonged periods, sometimes for months, but they do not reliably cure the infection. An infected dog may therefore remain infectious and pose a risk to other animals and people.
What if you choose not to test?
If you decide not to have your imported dog tested, we will need to follow our infection-prevention protocol.
This may include:
- The use of full personal protective equipment (PPE) by our team during your dog’s consultation
- Restrictions on procedures that could involve the transfer of bodily fluids
For an untested imported dog, we will be unable to perform procedures that carry a significant risk of bodily-fluid exposure. This includes:
- Blood testing
- Anal gland expression
- Surgery
- Dental procedures
What if my imported dog needs emergency treatment?
Your dog will not be refused emergency veterinary care.
If an imported dog requires emergency treatment and has not been tested for Brucella, we will take appropriate precautions to protect our team and other patients.
Where appropriate, we will perform an in-house Brucella screening test before carrying out treatment.
Because in-house tests can vary in reliability, we will also take blood samples and send them to APHA for confirmatory testing.
Keeping everyone safe
Our Brucella policy is designed to protect:
- Your dog
- Your family
- Our team
- Other patients
If you have any questions about Brucella testing or whether our policy applies to your dog, please speak to a member of our veterinary team.
Thank you for helping us maintain a safe environment for everyone.
High risk regions
High risk regions in Europe include:
Southern Europe
- Greece
- Spain
- Cyprus
Central and Eastern Europe
- Romania
- Moldova
- Macedonia
- Bulgaria
- Bosnia
- Serbia
- Belarus
- Ukraine
- Poland
- Hungary
- Slovakia
- Estonia
- Latvia
- Lithuania
- Russia
- Turkey