Last week, as well as writing about the potential of a no deal Brexit making pet passports become invalid, I mentioned the risk posed to dogs overseas by the Processionary Pine Caterpillar. This caterpillar used to only be found in Southern Europe, but with the warming climate it is now being found all over France. It is a hairy caterpillar that ultimately becomes a moth – but in its larval stage large groups of these hairy caterpillars will walk around in great long lines – particularly on woodland floors. Dogs go and have a nosey at the caterpillars but if they touch them with their noses or mouths the tiny hairs on the caterpillars will be released in defence, hook into the dog’s face or tongue and release a dangerous toxin.

This toxin can cause serious skin and eye damage and if the tongue is affected large areas of the tongue simply die away in a process called necrosis. If your dog comes into contact with these caterpillars they will show immediate signs of distress – wash the affected areas with water and get them to a vet as quickly as you can. My colleague Hannah recently saw a dog that had come across these caterpillars in France and lost a large section of its tongue – it was lucky to survive.

Reading up on the creatures it appears that we are starting to see a similar caterpillar in the South East of the UK – it is an “Oak” rather than a “Pine” Processionary Caterpillar but has similar effect on dogs. I would recommend that if you are travelling to the continent Google these creatures so you know what to look out for.