Moving dogs to France - health risks

[AC66]

Hi There, I will be moving to France with my 6 dogs when I sell my house here in the UK. I have read a lot about the various health risks, made worse by the fact that as immigrants they do not have their own natural immunity as the native dogs do. I know that the warmer the climate the greater the risks and am trying to strike a balance between making life better for me weather wise, and keeping the risks for them to a minimum. I am considering Limousin and Midi Pyrenees and am wondering just how far south I can go before disease prevention may become a worry (and very expensive!)Has anybody on here moved over to these regions with their dogs? If you have, I would really appreciate hearing about your experiences, if the risks are as great as they seem to be, and what preventative actions and meds you use to keep your dogs healthy. Thank you very much for any info you are able to give me, it will be a great help.

[lindal1000]

We live in the middle of the country in the South West. Apart from year round tick and flea treatment and making sure the dog gets the full vaccination for leptospirosis there aren't really any other special health risks. There are risks to living in the countryside that you don't always think of, such as being careful where you walk on hunting days, risk of poisoning from slug pellets and rat poison, and the temptation of deer and boar to chase. Also lots of berries around which the dogs like to eat.

We use advantix for flea and tick prevention but the collars are meant to be good, and there is now a tablet as well. We also check the dogs for ticks as well.

[mint]

My dog was poisoned twice when we lived in a different departement and this year she was very ill from a tick bite (must have been a very nasty tick because she'd been bitten hundreds of times before).

If you plan to take the dogs back to the UK at any time (holiday maybe), make sure their anti rabies jabs are up to date at all times.

[woolybanana]

Agree with all of the above; round here they are very definite about the dangers of lepto. but you must also check that your local vet in France is using the latest vaccine (there are several apparently).

Anti-rabies is compulsory, or course but various other things are highly recommended - vet will tell you.

The French do rabies jabs every year, but, I think, in UK it is every two years.

I think poeple with guns or poison are the biggest danger to dogs, so don't walk dogs where there are hunters.

[mint]

Could also get bitten by snakes.  Wools, didn't you have a dog once who got bitten and you had to rush it off to the vet's pronto?

[woolybanana]

Yes, one of mine tormented a baby snake until it finally and very reluctantly bit him on the muzzle. Rushed him to the vet who gave him an injection of, I think, adrenaline.

There is no snake bite antidote, these days, apparently. Certainly the vets in the Vendee didn't keep it.

[alittlebitfrench]

Dogs aside, my concern with the OP's thread is they are hesitating between the Limousin and Midi Pyrenees.

They are chalk and cheese areas of France for so many different reasons. I don't understand how you are debating between the two.

You have to move to a particular area of France for a reason. That is so important.

[Pierre ZFP]

I'm not a dog person so don't take this as Gospel but I seem to remember some restriction in France to keeping more than 4 dogs at one address?  I'm sure someone who knows better will be along soon

[Patf]

re - expensive.

Vet charges in France are lower than the UK, I think. eg I pay 40-50€ for rabies etc injection.

If you're in a country area the main thing is to check your dogs for ticks every evening. Especially if they have a thick coat.

Some dogs can't adjust to extreme heat - we took our son's greyhound and he died from overdoing it in hot weather. Although in general the further south you go the hotter it gets, the centre of the country tends to get more extremes of heat and cold, compared with the Atlantic coast.

[mint]

OH, Pat, that must have been so upsetting, that about your son's greyhound.

When our dog had an anaesthetic earlier this year for her teeth to be cleaned, the vet was most insistent that the heat would be very dangerous for her and that we must keep her cool at all times.

We moved to the lower level of our house (much cooler) and stayed there for most of the day and night during the summer.

[Chrissie]

Don't forget that pine processional caterpillars can be deadly to dogs. Try to avoid any property that has unmanageable pine trees (i.e. too high to remove nests ) and do not walk in pine forests from Feb to May.

Chrissie (81)