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Abstract

Although rabies has been eliminated from most European Union countries, the risk of reintroduction persists through the movement of infected animals, particularly via non-compliant imports. We describe a case of rabies in a dog imported commercially from Russia to Germany in 2025. The infection was confirmed in February 2026, with phylogenetic analysis linking the virus to the Cosmopolitan lineage (cluster C1b). Investigations revealed documentation inconsistencies, including suspected falsified vaccination records, highlighting the need for strengthened import controls.

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/content/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2026.31.19.2600372
2026-05-14
2026-06-10
/content/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2026.31.19.2600372
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Rabies in a dog commercially imported into Germany from Russia, 2026
<p class="citation"> <span>Citation style for this article:</span> <span class="meta-value authors"> <a href="/search?value1=Conrad+M+Freuling&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Freuling Conrad M</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Lisa+Rogoll&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Rogoll Lisa</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Sten+Calvelage&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Calvelage Sten</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Dirk+H%C3%B6per&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Höper Dirk</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Dmitry+Ushakov&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Ushakov Dmitry</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Laura+Rzepa&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Rzepa Laura</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Laura+Schmid&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Schmid Laura</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Stefan+Finke&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Finke Stefan</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Irene+Klingelh%C3%B6fer&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Klingelhöfer Irene</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Gudrun+Larres&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Larres Gudrun</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Christin+Kr%C3%BCger&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Krüger Christin</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Dirk+Steinhauer&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Steinhauer Dirk</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Silvia+Eisch-Wolf&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Eisch-Wolf Silvia</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Martin+Dehler&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Dehler Martin</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Carola+Sauter-Louis&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Sauter-Louis Carola</a>, <a href="/search?value1=Thomas+Mueller&option1=author&noRedirect=true" class="nonDisambigAuthorLink">Mueller Thomas</a></span>. Rabies in a dog commercially imported into Germany from Russia, 2026. <a href="/content/ecdc">Euro Surveill.</a> 2026;31(19):pii=2600372. <a href="https://doi.org/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2026.31.19.2600372" title="doi link" target="_blank">https://doi.org/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2026.31.19.2600372</a> <span class="ES_Article_citation"> <span class="generated">Received</span>: 29 Apr 2026;&nbsp;&nbsp; <span class="generated">Accepted</span>: 11 May 2026 </span> </p>
/content/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2026.31.19.2600372
/content/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2026.31.19.2600372
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