What is Canine Leptospirosis?

Leptospirosis is a disease which is caused by infection with bacteria called Leptospira. There are a variety of different species of these bacteria, but most commonly dogs are infected with the L interrogans genus. There are about 200 variations of L interrogans, and the most common Leptospira vaccination only protects from the main four of them. These four bacteria are canicola, icterphaemorrhagiae, grippotyphosa, and pomona. While the vaccination may not protect against the other hundreds of bacteria that can cause this illness, veterinarians suggest that you get your canine vaccinated anyway. Even a small precaution is better than no precaution at all.

When considering a vaccination for your dog against Leptospira, you may want to research which variations of the shot are available at your local veterinarian. Some vaccinations have been known to being on adverse side effects. Another way to prevent leptospira is by keeping your dog away from stagnant bodies of water. Typically, the bacteria enter a dog’s bloodstream through small wounds on the skin or through extremely wet skin. When a dog wades in water where the bacteria have been deposited through an infected animal’s urine, it can enter the body and start an infection. Lepto normally manifests itself in the kidneys and liver. Some dogs will experience the adverse effects in their brain or their eyes. Lepto bacteria can secrete toxins that will bring on a lot of inflammation in the affected organs. This can result in tissue and organ damage.

If your dog has Lepto, you can normally identify the disease by kidney or liver failure. Unfortunately, there are many cases were a dog will die too suddenly to even identify the disease. This is why you will want to take your dog to the vet as soon as you start noticing signs of lethargy, muscle and joint pain, vomiting, or frequent bleeding and bruising. Talk to a local vet to learn more about his dangerous virus and set up an appointment to vaccinate and reduce your risk of losing your pet to this sickness.