Aberystwyth University Tracks Sheepdogs by GPS to Gauge Hydatid Disease Risk in Mid Wales
Updated
Updated · Yahoo! Voices · Aug 2
Aberystwyth University Tracks Sheepdogs by GPS to Gauge Hydatid Disease Risk in Mid Wales
3 articles · Updated · Yahoo! Voices · Aug 2
Summary
GPS collars are being fitted to sheepdogs in mid Wales as Aberystwyth University launches a study to measure how widely hydatid disease may be circulating.
Faecal sampling and mapping of dogs' movements between fields and farms aim to show how the tapeworm spreads after dogs ingest infected sheep tissue and then excrete eggs.
Public Health Wales says the disease is uncommon but remains a significant concern because human infections can take 10 to 20 years to surface and often require surgery.
Meredydd Jones, 86, said he lived with lung cysts for years before extreme pain led to a 2016 hospital visit and operations in 2018 and 2019; he still has a liver cyst.
Researchers say recent evidence of infection reappearing in sheep and dogs has renewed concern in a region where the parasite is considered endemic because of extensive sheep farming.