b'A Little AwarenessCan Lead To A Lot Of Avoidance. by Elizabeth F. Baird, DVM, CVPP, CCRT, CVMA Leptospirosis, a disease common to ratsarecommoncarriersofLeptospira are terrifically specific either, but it doesmany mammals, is caused by a type of and this includes the ubiquitous wood rats start to help narrow the diagnosis list. Atbacterium called Leptospira. It seems to be andcitrusratsthatpopulatemostof this stage, the veterinarian is likely lookingon the rise in dogs the last few decades Florida. Theopossum,skunk,deer,cow to test for Leptospirosis.and has shifted from a rural disease to a and pig can carry other infectious strains The older Lepto test can take up to asuburbanandevenurban week and wont catch everyproblem. Dr. Carsen Brandt of patient. A newer type of test,theEmergencyandCritical an Elisa test, can be run rightCare Service at the University in the hospital in under 30ofFloridasCollegeof minutes. Its still not perfect,VeterinaryMedicine,has butitwilldetectmanyreported a tenfold increase in patients right away. cases since 2013. There have Apatientwiththesebeenfairlyrecentoutbreaks symptomsislikelyalreadyinFresno,Californiaand onintravenousfluidsandDenver,Colorado.Dr. medication to help with theRichardGoldsteinofthe vomiting and discomfort. AAnimalMedicalCenterin diagnosisofLeptospirosisNew YorkCitysayshesees indicatesaneedforverycasesofLeptoeveryweek, specific antibiotics as not allincludingindogsthathave antibiotics will do the trick.neverleftManhattan.So If IV fluid support and themuch for the image of this as appropriateantibioticsarea rural disease. started in a timely manner,Atypicalscenariogoes theprognosisisgoodandsomething like this: A raccoon Leaping lepto lizards, Batman, lets get outta here. most patients (80-plus per-urinates on the grass in a sub- There has been a tenfold increase in lepto cases since 2013. cent) will recover. If it takesTwo competitors during the annual Baldwin Park Doggie Derby earlier this year.urban yard or in a puddle at a Photographed by Joyce McCombs. longertodiagnoseduetopark during the night. A dog thevaguesymptomsorathen sniffs or licks at that curious odor of Leptospira bacteria. There is some ques- delay in seeking medical care, the dog maywhile out for a walk the next day. Bingo! tion as to whether squirrels are also carri- suffer kidney failure, but many can still beThe dog has now been exposed to one of ers for Leptospira. saved with dialysis. the eight strains of Leptospira bacteria that If a dog contracts Leptospirosis, what DidImentionthatyoucancatchcan cause Leptopsirosis in the dog.happens next? Unfortunately, the clinical Leptospirosis too? Yes, it is actually one ofThe bacteria quickly begin to repli- symptomsofthediseasearenotvery the most common infectious diseases incate and move into various target tissues distinctive, making diagnosis trickier. The humansworldwide. Thankfully,itisnotsuchasthekidneys,liver,spleenand affected pet will usually be lethargic and common in humans in the U.S., at leastcentral nervous system. The infected dog have a poor appetite, sometimes showing outside of Hawaii. The odds of catching ittypicallybeginstoshowsignsofillness signs of a fever. The majority of affected directly from your dog are pretty slim, butwithin seven days of exposure. The severi- animalswillhavesomevomitingand ifyourdoghasbeendiagnosedwithty of the illness can vary considerably, from aboutathirdwillhavediarrheaand Leptospirosis,yourvetwillgiveyoumild and vague symptoms to acute kidney weight loss. None of this is terribly specif- detailed instructions on methods to pro-failure and fairly sudden death. ic and it sounds like many other illnesses. tect yourself and family.So,whatotherwildlifecarrythese Routinelabtestsmayshowsignificant YouarefarmorelikelytocatchitLeptospira bacteria in their urine? In addi- abnormalities in the urinalysis, as well as from swimming in rivers, streams or walk-tion to the ever-present raccoon, mice and the kidney and liver values. None of these ing through swampy water. 58THE NEW BARKER www.TheNewBarker.com'