Leptospirosis is a zoonotic bacterial disease caused by pathogenic spirochetes from the genus Leptospira. It affects a wide range of mammals, including domestic animals, wildlife, and humans.
Leptospira are aerobic, gram-negative spirochetes known for their corkscrew-like motility. These bacteria grow slowly and can survive for weeks to months in warm, moist environments, such as urine-soaked soil or stagnant water. Leptospirosis is primarily transmitted through the urine of infected animals, especially rodents, though dogs and other animals can also act as carriers. Infected dogs may appear healthy while still shedding the bacteria in their urine, which poses a risk to other animals and humans.
Transmission
Dogs typically become infected when Leptospira bacteria enter the body through mucous membranes (Ex: mouth, nose, or eyes) or broken skin, such as cuts or scrapes. Common modes of transmission include:
➢ Direct Exposure: Contact with urine, contaminated water, soil, bedding, or food.
➢ Environmental Contamination: Urine-soaked soil, food, bedding, or stagnant water sources.
➢ Rare Occurrences: Bacteria may also be spread through breeding, bites from infected animals, or
transplacental from an infected mother dog to her puppies.
Clinical Signs
Leptospirosis can cause a range of clinical signs, varying from mild to severe. Common symptoms include:
➢ Loss of appetite
➢ Vomiting
➢ Lethargy
➢ Abdominal pain
➢ Diarrhea
➢ Jaundice (yellowing of the skin, gums, or eyes)
➢ Dehydration
➢ Polyuria, oliguria, hematuria or anuria.
➢ Epistaxis, melena, and hematemesis
➢ Weight loss
➢ Stiffness or muscle pain
If left untreated, leptospirosis can progress to severe, life-threatening conditions such as:
➢ Kidney Failure: chronic kidney disease, nephrogenic diabetes insipidus, renal tubular acidosis
➢ Liver Failure: Elevated ALP, ALT, bilirubin.
➢ Severe Lung Disease: Pulmonary hemorrhage.
➢ Bleeding Disorders: melena, hematuria, epistaxis, hematemesis and petechial hemmorhage on gums, mucous membranes.
Diagnosis
Leptospirosis can be difficult to diagnose because the clinical signs may resemble many other diseases, or the vaccine history may be uncertain. Based on this investigation, additional diagnostics often include a complete blood count, biochemistry profile and urinalysis, chest radiographs, abdominal ultrasound, and coagulation testing.
Based on these results, further testing is required to confirm the diagnosis. This may include a PCR test to detect Leptospira DNA in the blood or urine, as well as serological tests such as microscopic agglutination tests (MATs) or rapid tests.
Prevention
Preventing leptospirosis in dogs requires reducing their exposure to Leptospira bacteria and implementing effective preventive strategies, such as:
Leptospira vaccination.
➢ Administer the leptospirosis vaccine to dogs annually.
➢ Limit exposure to risky environments such as stagnant or slow- moving water (ponds, lakes)
and contact with wildlife, especially in high-risk areas.
➢ Control Rodent Populations as rodents are the primary carriers of Leptospira
Clean and disinfect areas where dogs may have contact with urine, especially in kennels, dog parks, or multi-dog households.
Note
Bioguard’s Qmini PCR can detect Leptospira spp. DNA in 90 minutes at your clinics using blood or urine as samples.
To learn more about Qmini PCR, click here: https://www.bioguardlabs.com/q....
