Dog movement conditions to reduce the spread of ehrlichiosis | Agriculture and Food

That is a serious step for the authorities to take.

Here are the details - my highlights.

Reason enough NOT to take your dog there if you have ANY regard for it.

Movement conditions

In order to reduce the risk of spread of ehrlichiosis in dogs from out of the Kimberley to southern Western Australia while the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) undertakes further surveillance, conditions have been placed on moving dogs out of the Kimberley region.

These movement conditions have been implemented under the Exotic Diseases of Animals Act 1993 Control Order No. 1/2020, and apply to the shires of Broome, Derby-West Kimberley, Halls Creek and Wyndham-East Kimberley (Controlled Area Order No. 1/2020).

People may only move dogs out of the Kimberley to southern WA in accordance with the following conditions or as approved by a DPIRD officer under the Exotic Diseases of Animals Act 1993.

Following recent detections of the disease in the northern Pilbara and Gascoyne, it is recommended that people moving dogs out of the Pilbara and Gascoyne also follow the below conditions.

Before moving a dog to southern WA, the person responsible for that dog must email DPIRD at animalbiosecurity@dpird.wa.gov.au. See below for acceptable notification details.

A dog being moved must be healthy.

A tick treatment must be applied to the dog during the seven days before moving a dog. The tick treatment must be registered for Rhipicephalus sanguineus (brown dog tick) and applied according to the manufacturers instructions.

The person responsible for moving the dog must keep a record of the treatment for brown dog tick for six months after the movement.

The person responsible for the dog must contact DPIRD if the dog becomes unwell following movement by calling the Emergency Animal Disease Hotline on 1800 675 888.

Acceptable notification is an email sent to animalbiosecurity@dpird.wa.gov.au with the responsible persons details (name, address, email, phone number), the dogs details (name, age, sex, breed, microchip number), product and date of tick treatment and details of destination for the dog.

Alternatively, you can download and complete the dog movement notification form in the Documents link on this webpage, take a photo of the completed form or email the Word file to animalbiosecurity@dpird.wa.gov.au.

The above conditions apply to all people who have dogs, including temporary residents of the Kimberley region who have brought their dogs into the area e.g. caravanners, station workers. It is recommended that people visiting the Pilbara and Gascoyne with dogs follow the same conditions.

If you have questions about the movement conditions, call:

(08) 9368  3929.

Cheers,

Peter