Overwintering of the brown dog tick in residential properties in England – raising awareness

PUBLIC Health England (PHE) previously reported a house infestation with the brown dog tick, Rhipicephalus sanguineus, in a residential property in Essex during 2014, following the importation of a dog from Spain ( Hansford and others 2015 ). Overwintering of this species indoors in the UK has not been reported previously, but was suggested to be possible in the event of harmonisation with EU pet travel rules in 2012, which removed the need for compulsory tick treatment for travelling pets ( Jameson and others 2010 , Defra 2011 , Wall 2012 ); clearly it is something that will need to be considered for future importation events.