Pets with MRSA superbug infection: MRSA in dogs cats animals

Bella Moss Foundation Mentioned in MSNBC News Article

When MRSA won't wane, check the family pet: Drug-resistant staph could be swapped between animals and owners

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23580386/

How to Get Rid of a Bad Vet

Vets ignore MRSA warning at peril

July 17th 2006

It wasn't an earth-shattering pronouncement. There was no brimstone or sulphur, or divine judgement. Voices we're raised in anguish or despair, but the words spoken at the first international conference on MRSA in animals will change the way veterinary surgeons approach infection control in small animal practice once and for all...

http://thebellamossfoundation.com/media/Vets_ignore_MRSA_warning_at_peril_pg_1.pdf

Groundbreaking Intl Conference on MRSA in Animals

A WOMAN from Edgware has raised over thousands in sponsorship money to put on a groundbreaking international conference on MRSA in animals. Jill Moss, of Edgware Bury Lane, became an authority on the subject after her dog died of the human strain, and was approached University of Liverpool Faculty of science  to put on an international conference. She said: "I'm really proud to be part of it. It has come about because DEFRA decided to set up a working group on current research into animal MRSA, which can be passed from human to animals and vice versa. They invited me to become the only lay member of the committee. I was then asked to put on a conference by the university. There will be experts from all over the world coming to present their research. From this we will decide the way forward."

Memorial to first canine victim of superbug

Hendon Times, August 25 2005 -Memorial to first canine victim of superbug

A dog's life: one year after the first known canine death from MRSA in Britain, the dog's owner, Jill Moss, planted a memorial tree at her home, in Edgwarebury Lane, Edgware, on Sunday. Ms Moss's ten-year-old Samoyed breed, Belles, contracted the superbug following an operation. She was joined by friends of her charity, the Bella Moss Foundation, which offers advice on the issue. For details visit wwwthebellamossfoundation.com

Daily Mail Article Now Available

Click below to view this article which highlighted recent activity by Defra in response to challenges surrounding pets & MRSA

Download dailymail.jpg

Daily Mail, Monday, August 15

Could you get MRSA bug from Your pet?
Inquiry after scientists claim hundreds of animals have been infected: By Beth Hale

MINISTERS have launched an inquiry into the spread of-MRSA to animals following reports of a sharp rise in the number of pets infected. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has set up a committee to investigate the extent to which the deadly superbug has infiltrated vets' surgeries.

There are fears that the antibioticresistant infection could be transferred between pets and their owners - or even enter the food chain if livestock are carrying the bug. MRSA - methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus - is carried harmlessly by one in three humans but can prove fatal in the elderly, newborn babies and those with a weakened immune system. About 5,000 hospital patients die from it every year.

The bug was first documented in an animal in 1999 but the extent to which it has spread is unclear. Small-scale studies have suggested that up to 10 per cent of dogs carry MRSA and the British Veterinary Association has been reporting between ten and 12 cases a year of animals being infected.

However, scientists at an Idexx veterinary research laboratory recently alerted the Government after encountering 310 cases of MRSA in animals over the past two and a half years. Members of the new committee will include actress Jill Moss, who has led a campaign to raise awareness of the risks of MRSA in pets after her dog Bella became the UK's first recorded canine victim of the bacteria.

Bella, a ten-year-old white samoyed, suffered blood poisoning, pneumonia and organ failure caused by MRSA after an operation a year ago on a torn ligament. She had been injured chasing a squirrel near Miss Moss's home in Edgware, NorthWest London. Her wound became infected a week after surgery and despite a further operation, she had to be put down. Since then, an eight-year-old alsatian called Connell is also known to have died from MRSA, along with at least one cat and several rabbits and guinea pigs.

Miss Moss, who has appeared in TV shows such as The Bill and EastEnders, said: `I never in my wildest dreams thought Bella might contract MRSA. If it had been diagnosed earlier she might still be here. `The real problem is that vets are reluctant to admit they have a problem in their surgeries. They blame the owners but often they are operating in conditions that aren't good enough.'

Miss Moss, 34, said the committee, which will include several health professionals, will look at how to stop MRSA escalating in animals and help to establish the best advice for vets. It is not known what, if any, danger MRSA in animals poses to humans. The veterinary association urges vets to take similar precautions to hospitals but points out there have been no recorded cases of MRSA being passed from animals to humans and it is highly unlikely the bug could enter the food chain.

Victim: Bella  with owner Jill Moss

Battling For Bella

Link: Aberdeen Press & Journal

The first recorded death of a dog from MRSA has panicked pet owners the length and breadth of Britain. NICOLA BARRY and BERNARD BALE ask if humans catch it from pets and if pets can catch it from humans

The sudden death of a beloved pet is bad enough, but when that death is slow and agonising, the heartache can be almost unbearable; especially when it is due to something that could have been avoided.

Through her charity, the Bella Moss Foundation, Jill Moss, an actress from north London, is seeking wider recognition of the possibility of pets contracting MRSA.

Yesterday, she marked the next stage in her campaign by planting a tree in memory of her beloved dog, Bella, who died exactly a year ago.

Click the link above for the whole story or click the link below for a pdf that includes a photo

Download 367847b.pdf

Actress’s dog first to die of superbug

Link: Sunday Times - Times Online.

Moss, a member of the Defra committee who is campaigning for wider recognition of

MRSA through her charity the Bella Moss Foundation, said: "The real problem is that vets are reluctant to admit they have a problem in their surgeries. They blame the owners but often they are operating in conditions that aren’t good enough.

"If I had known about MRSA in animals or understood the risk, Bella could have been saved not just from death, but from inhumane suffering."

Moss, who has appeared in television programmes such as The Bill and EastEnders, added: "At least Bella was a wake-up call and the government is now taking the issue very seriously."

This article prompted media coverage around the world. See the link above for more and here for American coverage. The Bella story has appeared on personal web sites, news sites, dog care blogs and national media in several nations around the world.

Actress tells how MRSA took life of her dog

Link: Life Style Extra.

An actress who lost her beloved dog to MRSA has been "swamped" by emails from pet owners around the world after launching a campaign to warn animal lovers of the dangers that lurk in veterinary surgeries.

Jill Moss, who has starred in EastEnders and The Bill, launched the campaign after her ten year-old Samoid Bella died a "slow, undignified and brutal" death in August last year.

Charity targets animal infections

Link: Edgware Times: News: Local News.

Charity targets animal infections

By Lawrence Marzouk

An Edgware woman whose dog became the first canine victim of the MRSA superbug last year launched a charity on Tuesday to tackle growing infection rates among small animals.

Jill Moss, of Edgwarebury Gardens, Edgware, received thousands of messages from concerned pet owners after a ten-year-old Samoyed, named Bella, died of the drug-resistant MRSA, and she now hopes the Bella Moss Foundation charity will help push for better practice among vets.

Ms Moss has teamed up with Professor David Lloyd, of the Royal Veterinary College, North Mymms, who has researched the risks of MRSA infection among animals, to promote better hygiene among vets.

And yesterday, the British Veterinary Hospitals Association announced it was embarking on an educational campaign to ensure all vets were aware of the risks.

The association is asking vets to use sterile gloves, masks and scrub suits during operations to prevent animals getting the bug.

Agony aunt Claire Rayner, patron of the charity, said: "It is a very worrying situation. More research needs to be done for the future.

"I am concerned about MRSA cross-contamination from people to animals, and vets should be diligent about infection control. We should all be concerned with protecting pets from unnecessary suffering and death."

Ms Moss added: "It is up to individual practices to ensure cleanliness. If they do not, the rate of infection will increase."

The charity also hopes to set up a veterinary clinic for the care of pets suffering from MRSA and other serious infections.

Visit www.thebellamoss foundation.com for more details.