Canine Leptospirosis

Description: Canine Leptospirosis is a bacterial disease that humans and other animals can get; it affects the liver and kidneys

Cause: Leptospira interrogans. It’s a spiral bacteria. There are tons of different types for this disease but only 7 main ones.

The 7 main types of Leptospirosis

Zoonotic: yes, it is the most widespread disease in the world

Reportable: this disease is not reportable

Resistance in the environment: this bacteria is slow moving so it can last in the environment for months, it prefers stagnant water & soil (stock ponds) and temperate climates

Transmission modes: Pets can get this disease from many different animals such as: skunks, foxes, opossums, raccoons, rats, and other vermin. They get it from eating contaminated feces or drink contaminated water, sniffing where an infected animal urinated/defecated, from our shoes if we walked through a contaminated area, and even through the placenta of the mom. Humans can get this disease through eating/drinking contaminated food/water, and contaminated water/soil getting into a cut and in your eyes, nose, or mouth. 

Vaccine: there is a vaccination but the vaccine does not protect your dog against all of the different types of this disease just the ones they get vaccinated for. You either vaccinate for icterohemorrhagica & canicola. New bacterins are for those two plus pomona & grippotyphosa. When you get a combo shot it will have a Leptospirosis vaccine in it.

Stopping the infection: the main thing you can do to stop your dog from getting this disease you need to make sure it is up to date with all of its vaccines and keep it away from wildlife the best that you can. 

Clinical signs:  the signs may vary depending on what phase the animal is in but for the most part they show fever, bruising, & anterior uveitis. If the disease is further along you may also see: vomiting/diarrhea, excessive urinating/dehydration, anorexia, abdominal pain, weight loss, lethargy, & weakness. In humans the signs are pretty much the same but we can also get meningitis, a recurring fever, & aching with stiffness of the neck.

Anterior uveitis

Pathognomonic signs: there aren’t any because the signs are very non-specific.

Incubation period: this period is about 2-25 days; it will appear in blood before it shows in the urine.

Diagnostic methods: the diagnosis can be cultured from infected blood, spinal fluid (humans), or urine. To test if the dog as this disease the Veterinarian has to send blood or urine to a reference lab because there is no test that they can do in the clinic. 

 Treatment: supportive care and antibiotics depending on clinical signs. Penicillin will treat the infection & doxycycline will eliminate the worst state. Supportive care is mainly if the patient is severely ill. 

Client information: if you are immunocompromised or pregnant you are at high risk of getting this disease, wear protective gear and make sure you wash your hands after playing with your dog, remember that the diagnosis & treatment are costly and take time. If your dog does get infected with this disease make sure you keep it away from the other dogs in the house so it is not spread to the others & be sure to disinfect / bleach anything in the house that the dog has used or went to the bathroom on to kill the disease.

Work cited

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dbmd/diseaseinfo/leptospirosis_g.htm