Bd Free ‘Phibs

amphibians need your help

Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) is a serious concern impacting animal welfare, pet owners, and our environment. The Bd-Free ‘Phibs campaign aims to minimize its effects by educating the public and pet professionals about the disease.

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The Facts

• The disease caused by Bd, known as chytridiomycosis, is the worst infectious disease ever recorded among wildlife in terms of the number of species impacted and the severity of the impact.
• Amphibians (frogs, toads, salamanders, and caecelians) are the most threatened group of animals worldwide thanks, in part, to amphibian declines attributed to Bd.
• Amphibians are becoming increasingly popular as pets.
• The trade in amphibians for pets and other purposes has inadvertently resulted in the movement of Bd. The pet industry wants to minimize the risk that Bd is spread through its activities.
• Unwanted pet amphibians released into the natural environment could spread Bd or other diseases to wild amphibians as invasive species.

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Campaign History

The Pet Advocacy Network, then the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council (PIJAC), launched the “Bd-Free ‘Phibs” campaign in November 2007, during an international conference Amphibian Declines and Chytridiomycosis: Translating Science into Urgent Action, in Tempe, Arizona. The meeting was attended by approximately 200 participants representing state and federal agencies, universities, non-governmental organizations, funding foundations, zoos and aquaria, and the private sector. Organizations such as the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) became campaign partners.

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