AN outbreak of mange which has been hammering the local fox population is spreading to dogs and has resulted in pet owners receiving bites from the mites which carry the disease.
Forest vet Mark Hinds has treated a number of dogs suffering from mange.
On Monday he treated a dog at Newnham and found it was carrying mites which had also bitten the animal's owners.
" While it is not serious in humans and is easily treated, it can be very uncomfortable for dogs," he said.
"We are treating an increasing number of dogs with mange. They do not require direct contact with foxes to pick it up and can do so by simply rolling in an area where a fox has been," said Mr Hinds.
The symptoms are recognised by severe itching followed by the formation of crust on the skin, usually on the ears, elbows, hocks or belly.
The disease can be identified by a blood test or skin scraping and is easily treated by a monthly dropper treatment on the back of the animal's neck.
"Treatments can be bought over the counter but if owners are in doubt they should contact their vet," said Mr Hinds.
It was likely, he said, that the fox population had increased because of the ban on hunting caused by Foot and Mouth and as a result mange had increased proportionately.
"It is not in itself fatal in foxes but it does weaken the animals and that can obviously lead to their deaths," he said.
The disease, which makes fur on foxes fall out, is said to have spread from Bristol when the fox population was reduced by as much as 90 per cent in the 1990s.
It is thought to have travelled to West Gloucestershire after spreading outwards from Bristol to Gloucester.
Locally, there has been a fall in the fox population on the edges of the Forest and some areas have been particularly badly affected.