Cats and dogs are exposed to numerous arthropod vectors which transmit partially life-threatening viral, bacterial and protozoological diseases. Knowledge about and awareness of these diseases is dramatically increasing during recent years, especially as many of them show zoonotic potential. Often these diseases are difficult to treat or show either a highly aggressive (Ehrlichia canis, Babesia canis canis) or primary chronic (Borrelia sp., Leishmania) progress. For these reasons a prevention of disease transmission is crucial.

There are two prerequisites for successful prevention of vector borne disease (VBD) transmission; the first is an ectoparasiticide with a safe killing or at least antifeeding ("repellent") effect which is faster than the minimum transmission time of the respective disease. The second one is strict compliance of the animal owner who has to ensure that retreatments are applied in the needed frequency to maintain a fully effective active ingredient level.

Up to-date, both prerequisites have been limited. There are few spot-on applications available which provide a sufficiently fast, "repellent" efficacy against fleas and ticks to be useful tools in a VBD prevention program. As they are usually pyrethroid-based, they must not be used in cats which leaves this species without the most powerful protective tool. On the other hand, owner compliance is still poor: 77% of pet owners protect their pets for not more than three months per year which leaves huge treatment gaps.

A solution might be a novel, 8 months effective polymer matrix collar, containing 10% imidacloprid and 4.5 % flumethrin. It has been EU approved for longterm use in cats and dogs against fleas (C. felis) and ticks (I. ricinus, R. sanguineus, D. reticulatus, R. turanicus). Besides its approved broad insecticidal, acaricidal and anti-feeding ("repellent") efficacy, also its VBD transmission prevention potency has been investigated in dogs in a negative controlled Babesia canis transmission study: Two groups of 8 dogs (collar treated and negative controls) were infested with D. reticulatus ticks positive for Babesia canis. Infection success was monitored by blood smears, serology and PCR at different timepoints after infestation. Latest 28 days after infestation, all control dogs appeared to be Babesia positive, whereas all treated animals were fully protected.

The results of this study strongly suggest that the novel collar enables the establishment of successful VBD transmission prevention even in previously problematic or neglected areas.