A dog owner has called on the authorities to get to the bottom of the spate of sickness cases among pets after seaside visits.
Andrew Lambeth was speaking to YorkMix Radio after his English springer spaniel, Milson, fell ill this week.
They went for a walk on Fraisthorpe Beach and on into Bridlington on Monday.
Everything seemed normal, Andrew said – until the following day.
“We noticed he’d started to lose his appetite. And we just put it down to him sort of being picky with his food,” Andrew said.
“But that got worse to the point where he wasn’t eating anything at all. Then last night, he was sick as well. And he’s had a bad stomach since we got back from our day out, not very nice.”
He pointed out that there have been problems on the beach before – hundreds of dead crustaceans were washed up there last autumn.
“We’ve had him to the vet’s as well, and the vet said he’s been seeing a lot of this coming in and nobody’s quite sure what’s causing it.
“There’s something that’s definitely not right,” Andrew said. ” And we need to get to the bottom of it, before it gets worse.”
Investigation underway
We reported yesterday that there were countless reports of dogs falling ill after visits to the Yorkshire coast, including Whitby, Scarborough and Robin Hood’s Bay.
North Yorkshire County Council has issued a statement saying it was investigating the issue.
It said: “We’ve been made aware of reports of dogs presenting with a sickness and diarrhoea type illness in our borough and also in neighbouring areas to the north and south.
“The cause of the illness, and the locations it appears to be linked to, are unclear.
“While dogs walked on beaches have been affected, we’ve also read reports from dog owners that the same symptoms are affecting dogs only walked at inland locations away from beaches.
“We’re in discussions with our partner organisations to gather intelligence and carry out investigations into possible causes.”
Any vets who have information about possible links to a canine virus that could help these investigations are asked to contact the council’s dog warden here.
East Riding of Yorkshire Council says there is currently no direct link between the illnesses and beach walks.
“Our coastal services team regularly inspect the beaches for signs of any irregular occurrences and at present there is nothing unusual; however, this will continue to be monitored and action will be taken, if and when necessary,” they said.
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