Bayer Animal Health has been enjoying considerable success in its efforts to raise awareness of the danger of lungworm amongst pet owners.

The company signed model and 'Strictly Come Dancing' presenter Tess Daly to front it's Be Lungworm Aware campaign at Crufts this year.

Coincidentally, her previous involvement in the Be Lungworm Aware campaign has led her to believe that her Golden Retriever, Sam, died of lungworm.

She said: "Back then I didn’t even realise lungworm existed. It was only subsequently that I became aware of the parasite and symptoms and I thought, ‘hang on this sounds horribly familiar’.

"It wasn’t confirmed what was causing Sam’s symptoms, but he was very tired, off his food and coughing a lot. Eventually we had to send him to a specialist vet centre as his symptoms worsened. They did all sorts of tests on him, and even a blood transfusion in an attempt to save his life, it was awful. We had to liquefy all his food and feed him through a syringe, and by this point he was vomiting and had severe diarrhoea, and in the end we had no choice but to put him down, he just couldn’t carry on."

Tess's involvement in the campaign is definitely paying dividends in raising awareness. Here she is talking about it in a Daily Telegraph video. There's also a piece in What's on TV. And although the Daily Mail seems more interested in her 'casual but slick ensemble', the photographs get the message across and there's a video there too.

Bayer has also launched an interactive lungworm map to assist with plotting the prevalence of the disease across the UK. The company says it is part of a wider research programme to better monitor and document the spread of the disease. Vets are asked to report cases of lungworm in their practices to be added to the map, so dog owners can then view reported cases of lungworm in their area at www.lungworm.co.uk.

PS: Whilst you're here, take a moment to see our latest job opportunities for vets.