Leptospirosis and Your Dog
RESOURCES
IDEXX: Real-Time Pet Disease Reporting
This is not all results, only what vets have reported but will give you an idea of some of the "hot spots".
This is not all results, only what vets have reported but will give you an idea of some of the "hot spots".
Leptospirosis in Your Dog: How Dogs Catch It, How We Cure It, How We Prevent it
by Dr. Ron Hines DVM PhD
Highlights
by Dr. Ron Hines DVM PhD
Highlights
- What causes Leptospirosis?
- How Would My dog Catch Leptospirosis?
- What Happens When My Dog Catches Leptospirosis?
- What Are The Signs I Would See in My Dog?
- How Would My Veterinarian Diagnose Leptospirosis in My Dog?
- Is There a Danger I Could Catch It?
- How Will my Veterinarian Treat Leptospirosis in My Pet?
- If My Dog Recovered From Leptospirosis, Can He Catch Lepto Again?
- How Can I Prevent My Pets From Catching Leptospirosis?
- How Long Do Leptospirosis Organisms Survive In the Environment?
Leptospirosis
The Pet Health Library
By Wendy C. Brooks, DVM, DipABVP
Highlights
The Pet Health Library
By Wendy C. Brooks, DVM, DipABVP
Highlights
- "Typical Symptoms and Clinical Picture
- Fever, depression, loss of appetite, joint pain, nausea, excessive drinking, jaundice, excess bleeding brought on by low platelet count.
- Recovered animals can shed leptospires for months after recovery. Younger animals tend to be more severely affected than older animals.
- Most cases are diagnosed between July and December and involve large breed dogs in rural or suburban environments.
- There may be a genetic predisposition for infection in German Shepherd dogs."
- "Leptospires are transmitted either directly, meaning through direct contact with infected tissue or secretions, or indirectly, meaning through contact with contaminated water, soil or food. The most common means of transmission is by urine-contaminated water. Leptospire organisms are able to survive for months in cool moist earth, assuming they do not actually freeze or become exposed to direct sunlight. Once they are in the soil, they readily wash into bodies of water, including puddles. Urine contamination usually comes from wildlife (especially rats and raccoons) but could come from infected dogs."
- "Leptospire organisms are difficult to detect; it turns out to be much more practical to look for antibodies made against the organisms with the idea being that if antibodies are present, so is the organism. The problem with this idea is that many dogs are vaccinated against leptospirosis, which means that they will have antibodies without infection. Vaccination status must be considered when antibody levels are tested."
- "The PCR test, which detects even small amounts of leptospire DNA, is an excellent test if vaccination has been recent. PCR testing is becoming more common and may supplant the MAT test as a confirming test. The problem is that it will detect dead organisms, which can make it hard to interpret in a recovering patient."
- "Fortunately, Leptospira interrogans sensu lato is sensitive to penicillin, a readily available antibiotic. After penicillin has been used to stop leptospire reproduction and limit bloodstream infection, tetracycline derivatives (such as doxycycline) are used to clear leptospires from the kidneys. Leptospires are cleared from the blood within 24 hours of starting antibiotic treatment but it takes about a week for them to clear from the urine so it is important to wear gloves, goggles, etc. and be conscious of contamination."
- "Intravenous fluids are crucial to support blood flow through the damaged kidneys so that recovery is possible. Any areas at home that have been contaminated with urine should be disinfected with an iodine-based product and gloves should be warn while cleaning up any urine. Prognosis is guarded depending on the extent of organ damage with appropriate treatment 80-90 percent survival rates are reported."
- "Vaccination Options
Prevention against Leptospira interrogans sensu lato is only available for the serovars called canicola, grippotyphosa, pomona and icterohaemorragiae. (Some vaccines cover all four serovars while others cover only two out of four.) As a result of long standing use of this vaccine, it is hard to assess how important it is to vaccinate against leptospirosis. (As you might imagine, most recent outbreaks involve serovars for which vaccination does not exist,which suggests that the vaccine is working.)" - "In the past, leptospirosis vaccine was felt to be associated with a higher chance of immunological vaccine reactions, but vaccines made from leptospires grown in protein-free media have made vaccination reaction far less likely. A recent study involving thousands of dogs and their vaccinations showed no increase in vaccine reaction risk with leptospirosis vaccination."
- "Vaccination will reduce the severity of disease but will not prevent infected dogs from becoming carriers.
Other important aspects of prevention include controlling rodents in the pet's environment and removing standing water."
How do I keep my dog safe from leptospirosis? Culpeper Star-Exponent (Virginia) April 14 2013 Sunday found via Lexi-Advance database search.
Highlights
Highlights
- "Your dog can become infected with leptospirosis by drinking, swimming in or walking through contaminated water sources. Bacteria can enter the bloodstream through a cut in the skin or through mucous membranes (mouth, eyes and nose)"
- "Leptospirosis is a contagious disease that can be transmitted from dog to dog. Risk of exposure increases during the summer and fall as well as other periods of increased rainfall. ... Humans are also at risk for Leptospirosis."
- "Prevention of leptospirosis includes avoiding potentially contaminated water sources, vaccination of dogs and livestock and practicing good hygiene."
- "Signs of leptospirosis in dogs include fever, loss of appetite, vomiting, diarrhea, shivering, stiffness, sore muscles, dehydration, weakness, lethargy and depression. In the most severe cases, the disease can lead to kidney or liver failure. Treatment includes intravenous fluid therapy, antibiotics and supportive care."
- "Leptospirosis vaccine is convenient, affordable and safe. Diagnosis and treatment of leptospirosis may be costly and the disease is potentially fatal."
- "Several strains of Leptospira exist. These include Leptospira canicola, Leptospira interohaemorrhagiae, Leptospira pomona, Leptospira grippotyphosa, Leptospira copenhagenii, Leptospira australis, Leptospira autumnalis, Leptospira ballum and Leptospira bataviae. Vaccines are serovar-specific (strain specific). The four most common strains are available in canine vaccines."