Pet Health Leptospirosis

By Jaime Smoot Speed

Boy do we love our pets…we love them so much oftentimes that we invite them into our homes, on our couches, and even in our beds. This has led to more and more research on zoonotic diseases: diseases that animals can transmit to humans. Through this, our understanding of the bacteria leptospirosis has tripled over the last decade. Let’s discuss some of the facts about this deadly disease.

The bacteria are spread in the urine of infected animals. They can survive for many months, depending on conditions, in the soil and water. Wild animals, cows, pigs, rats, mice, dogs, and horses can all carry the disease while showing no signs. We used to think of leptospirosis as a rural disease. While camping is still listed as one of the risk factors for a higher exposure rate, now we know more than 50% of rats are infected and some of the largest outbreaks are happening in cities like Los Angeles. Signs in our dogs range from just not feeling quite right to blindness, spontaneous bleeding in the lungs, kidney, liver failure, or even sudden death.

Humans encounter the animals’ urine or the infected soil or water. The bacteria enter the body through mucous membranes or the skin. Sickness can occur in 2 phases, 2-4 weeks after exposure. The first phase looks like the flu with fever, vomiting, diarrhea, headache, and muscle aches. The second phase leads to kidney or liver failure, or sometimes meningitis. Speak to your physician for more information on this disease in humans.

Treatment in animals starts with aggressive antibiotic therapy. It can take up to a week to eliminate the organism from the urine, so it is important to take precautions during this time. The rest of the treatment depends on the organ systems involved but almost always involves intravenous fluid therapy. It is also important to remember that animals that have gotten sick from leptospirosis before can become infected again.

It is essential to consider vaccinating your dog against leptospirosis, both for their health and ours. Leptospirosis vaccines used to be considered a “hot” vaccine with high reaction rates. This is no longer true – it has similar reaction rates to other commonly given vaccines as now it is grown in protein-free media. We have vaccines against 4 “serovars” (which are types of leptospirosis). There are 10 important serovars in dogs, and there are over 250 serovars total. Vaccinations will reduce the severity of the disease, and some companies are claiming that theirs can prevent spread of the bacteria through the urine. Vaccination starts with a series of 2 injections spaced 2-4 weeks apart, and then once yearly thereafter. Please do not rely on old information from friends and some breeders that are not up to date on the latest research. Ask your veterinarian for more information and to see if your pet needs this important vaccine.

Jaime Smoot Speed was born in West Virginia, went to James Madison University with a BS in molecular biology, then worked at Johns Hopkins doing research until attending UGA for Vet School. She graduated in 2010 and moved to Clayton with her husband, who is a native, five years ago. She works part time at Rabun Animal Hospital. She opened Claws & Paws in December 2020. You can reach Claws & Paws at 706-212-7322 or visit their website: claytonpawsandclaws.com or on facebook and instagram: @claytonclawsandpaws