Bacterial diseases in dogs : Lyme diseases ,Colibacillosis ,Leptospirosis

Bacterial diseases in dogs
Bacterial diseases in dogs

Bacterial diseases in dogs: Bacteria is everywhere. We can not stay unexposed from them. But most of them can’t cause disease in us because of our immune system. Still, sometimes, they make their entry and cause diseases.

Our pets are also equally exposed to these bacteria. They infect our immune-compromised pets and develop diseases in them. Here we are listing some common bacterial diseases in dogs.

Lyme diseases in Dog

This is the most common Bacterial diseases in dogs. This infection is generally sub-clinical in dogs. But in the case of appearance of symptoms, the dominant clinical manifestation is recurrent lameness due to inflammation of joints. 

Cause of Lyme diseases in Dog

The major cause of this disease is a spirochete (Bacteria) belonging to Borrelia Burgdorfer species. 

The major reason for the transmission of this disease is by a hard tick.  

Symptoms of Lyme diseases in Dog

  • Dogs with Lyme disease have recurrent lameness because of inflammation of joints. 
  • This lameness may last for 3 to 4 days and reoccurs days to a week later. The reoccurrence may be in the same leg or another leg. 
  • This lameness is known as shifting lameness.
  • The disease may lead to swollen, warm and painful joints.
  • The disease may cause kidney disorders.
  • The most common kidney disorder in this disease is glomerulonephritis i.e. inflammation and dysfunction of glomeruli of the kidney. 
  • In the absence of proper treatment, this may cause the failure of the kidney. The failure of the kidney is manifested by signs like vomiting, diarrhea, lack of appetite, increased urination, weight loss and thirst, and abnormal fluid build-up. 
  • Other symptoms like a stiff walk with an arched back. 
  • Your dog may face Fever, lack of appetite and depression.
  • Heart abnormalities are rare in these diseases but can not be neglected. 
  • The nervous complication is also rare. 

Diagnosis

  •  If you notice your dog showing symptoms similar to listed above, take your dog to the veterinarian. You will need to give a true and thorough history of your dog’s behavior to your vet. 
  • He will diagnose the affected organ based on your history and may run some combination of blood chemistry tests, urinalysis, fecal examination and test specific for Lyme disease. 
  • There are several reasons for arthritis. Your veterinarian will differentiate the joint inflammation from Lyme’s disease and will start the treatment. 

Treatment

If diagnosed with Lyme’s disease, the vet will start the treatment until your dog will be stable. The drug of choice in it is  Doxycycline along with another antibiotic also. 

Leptospirosis(Bacterial diseases in dogs)

This is a febrile disease characterized by several clinical manifestations. These are fever, hemolytic anemia, hemoglobinuria, and interstitial nephritis. 

Cause

Leptospira is the culprit behind this disease. 

Symptoms

  • The symptoms of these diseases vary. They depend on the involvement of CNS, liver, kidney, lungs, and eyes. 
  • General clinical findings are a rise in temperature, lack of appetite, hemolytic jaundice and anemia. 
  • In peracute or severe cases, there are hemorrhages of the mucus membrane and the death of animals in a short period are recorded. 
  • In acute or less severe cases, you will find jaundice, fever, ulceration of buccal cavity and nephritis.
  • Congestion of eyes and ocular discharge is also present. 

Diagnosis

Your vet will diagnose based on your provided history. He may conduct some laboratory tests like hematology, isolation of leptospira in urine and blood, serological tests and histopathological tests. 

Treatment

  • Efforts can be made to control infection before irreparable damage to the liver and kidney. 
  • Drugs like Streptomycin and penicillin is more popular in this case.

Salmonellosis(Bacterial diseases in dogs)

This is generally the cause of disorders like Gastroenteritis and septicemia. 

Cause

This manifestation is caused by Salmonella bacteria.

Symptoms

  • The signs and symptoms of the disease are determined by the severity. The most common symptoms are fever, shock, lethargy, diarrhea, anorexia, vomiting and weight loss. 
  • Other symptoms like dehydration, skin disease, mucus in stool, swollen lymph nodes, abnormal vaginal discharge and sometimes miscarriage in the pregnant bitch.

Diagnosis

Your vet will diagnose the severity of the diseases. Generally, a dog with a salmonella infection does not show any symptoms. Sometimes there may be the development of gastroenteritis. 

Treatment

Antibiotic course with supportive treatment generally works great in this disease.

Colibacillosis

This is the most common infection in puppies. It is generally not severe but sometimes may lead to septicemia in Immunocompromised puppies.

Cause

Escherichia coli, commonly known as E.coli are the etiological factor. They generally reside in the lower intestine. They are sometimes are beneficial until they don’t cause disease.

Symptoms

Depression, dehydration, vomiting, anorexia, weakness, lethargy, diarrhea, cold skin, bluish mucous membrane are some common symptoms.

Diagnosis

A blood test by your vet will help him to diagnose this condition.

Treatment

Antibiotic course with supportive treatment generally works great in this disease.

     

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