You must be careful if your dog often goes out to play, has frequent contact with wild animals, or drinks unclean water. Your dog may be infected with leptospirosis. This article aims to help you understand leptospirosis and provide your dog with a lepto vaccination program to help your dog’s immune system activate quickly and effectively resist leptospirosis.
What is leptospirosis?
Leptospirosis is a zoonotic infectious disease caused by leptospirosis bacteria. Wild animals such as pigs, dogs, cats, and rats may be infected with leptospirosis. The most common hosts are rodents, especially wild rats (mice, possums, etc.).
How are dogs infected?
Mice and other rodents mainly carry leptospirosis bacteria but can also be taken by mammals such as pigs, dogs, and humans. When the urine of infected animals is excreted and contaminates water and soil, leptospirosis will grow exponentially in a suitable environment (especially in a warm and humid environment). When the mucous membranes of the dog’s damaged skin, eyes, mouth, nasal cavity, or vagina come into contact with contaminated water or soil, or when the dog preys on infected small animals, it may be infected with leptospirosis. After hurricanes, heavy rains, or floods, bacteria multiply and spread rapidly, and the risk of infection in humans and animals increases exponentially.
What are the symptoms of dogs after contracting leptospirosis?
The usual symptoms of dogs after infection are loss of appetite, drowsiness, and high fever.
Severe symptoms of dogs after infection：
- Acute kidney injury: vomiting, diarrhea, blood in the stool, frequent thirst, polyuria or no urine
- Liver dysfunction: jaundice, mental malaise, convulsions, hypoglycemia, ascites, coagulation dysfunction, etc.
How to diagnose leptospirosis in dogs?
The veterinarian will collect the dog’s blood and urine, process a complete blood cell count, and test the number of bacteria in the blood and urine. Suppose you want to know the severity of your dog’s infection. In that case, your veterinarian may recommend nucleic acid and serological testing for your dog to identify the specific strain and severity of the dog’s infection. This quantitative testing method makes the results more accurate and intuitive and helps the veterinarian monitor and treat the dog’s infection in the future. Of course, based on the results of serology and nucleic acid testing combined with the clinical symptoms of dogs, the accuracy of diagnosis can be maximized.
What is the treatment method?
Antibiotics such as penicillin, ampicillin, and amoxicillin (for at least 14 days) can be used in the early or acute stage of dog infection to help dogs inhibit the proliferation of leptospirosis and resist bacterial damage to dog organs. When the dog has a destructive appetite and does not eat, intravenous injection can help the dog resist leptospirosis, reduce the burden on the liver and kidneys, improve the dog’s immunity, and promote the dog’s rapid recovery.
What is the lepto vaccine for dogs？
The lepto vaccine typically contains inactivated (killed) strains of the bacteria that cause leptospirosis. By introducing these inactivated bacteria into a dog’s system, the vaccine stimulates the immune response, allowing the dog to produce antibodies. If the dog is later exposed to live Leptospira bacteria, its immune system can respond more effectively to fight off the infection.
Types of Lepto Vaccines
- There are primarily two types of lepto vaccines available: Divalent Vaccine: Protects against two strains of leptospirosis.
- Tetravalent Vaccine: Offers protection against four strains, which includes more common serovars found in various regions.
How to prevent leptospirosis?
- Dogs should avoid touching contaminated soil and water, especially non-flowing pools or puddles. This will reduce contact between dogs and wild animals and prevent dog injuries (skin damage, bleeding, etc.).
- Inoculation with effective leptospirosis vaccine
WIXBIO Recommended Vaccination Regimen: WIXBIO recommends either a bivalent or a quadrivalent Leptospira vaccine. The strains used for the bivalent vaccine are Leptospira canis and Leptospira hemorrhagic jaundice, and the strains used for the tetravalent vaccine are canicola – jaundice – grippotyphosa – Bratislava.
Whether to get a divalent or tetravalent vaccine depends on the local epidemic strain. If the locally spreading strains are canicola leptospirosis and jaundice leptospirosis, a divalent vaccine is recommended. If the locally spreading strains contain grippotyphosa or Bratislava strains, a tetravalent vaccine is recommended.
Recommended vaccination plan:
Because the vaccine provided by WIXBIO is inactivated, the main role is humoral immunity and a small part of cellular immunity. The immunity induced by plasma cells is shorter than that of memory cells.
12 weeks: first injection
divalent vaccine or tetravalent leptospirosis vaccine
16 weeks: second injection
divalent vaccine or tetravalent leptospirosis vaccine
every year：
After two vaccinations, get a divalent or tetravalent leptospirosis vaccine once a year.
Vaccination with leptospirosis vaccine cannot guarantee 100% that the dog will not be infected because it will also be affected by the dog’s physique, environment, and the prevalence of local strains, etc. Vaccination can reduce the risk of infection in pets, and after being infected, their symptoms may be alleviated.
What is the cost of canine leptospirosis vaccination?
The cost of vaccination will be affected by factors such as supply and demand, production costs, and government subsidies. Generally speaking, the price of leptospirosis vaccine is about 30-50 dollars per dose on the market. It is recommended to consult your veterinarian for the most accurate price information when you need to be vaccinated against leptospirosis.
Will there be side effects after vaccination?
Most dogs will not have side effects after vaccination. According to statistics, less than one in a thousand dogs may have side effects. This may be related to the dog’s physical condition, but you don’t need to worry in most cases. Your veterinarian will also give your dog a comprehensive assessment to speculate on the probability of possible side effects.
Can humans be infected with leptospirosis?
Leptospirosis is a zoonotic disease that infects dogs and people. We recommend that your dog be vaccinated against leptospirosis, not only for your dog but also for your health considerations. Using our products can bring you great peace of mind.
How can I protect my dog from leptospirosis?
To reduce the risk of infection, it is recommended that your dog not play in areas where leptospirosis is endemic, not approach contaminated pools or soil, and not come into contact with wild animals. Of course, we recommend getting a divalent or tetravalent vaccine to prevent leptospirosis, protect your dog, and protect your health so that you and your dog can travel with peace of mind.
