Ottawa vet warning dog owners about potentially deadly disease

An Ottawa veterinarian is sounding the alarm after treating a dog forleptospirosis at his clinic last week.

Leptospirosisis a bacterial disease that causes vomiting, diarrheaand severeweightlossin animals. Without treatmentit can lead to kidney failure and death.The disease can also be passed on to humans.

Dogs can catch the "zoonotic" disease when they drink water that's beencontaminated with the urine of other animals, such as puddles in dog parks.

Dr. Ian Cameron knows the symptoms ofleptospirosisfirst-hand. Seventeen years ago, when he was a student at the University of Guelph, he contracted the disease from the infected dogs he was treating.

"It felt like my kidneys were on fire," recalled Cameron."It was extremely painful, I felt reallynauseousfor a long time."

Vet infected

It happened in the fall of 2000, as Cameron was beginning his last year of veterinarian school, when an outbreak ofleptospirosisstruck 247 dogs in the region, killing 15.

It was a real eye opener for how severe and how rapidly the illness could not only affect dogs, but people too.- Dr. Ian Cameron, veterinarian

The originof the disease was traced to a popular dog park in Kitchener-Waterloo.Before the disease was officially diagnosed, Cameron had already handled a number of sick dogs without the protection of gloves.

"I had to go to the hospital and I was put on someaggressiveantibiotics," said Cameronfrom his office at WestboroAnimal Hospital.

"It was a real eye opener for how severe and how rapidly the illness could not only affect dogs, but people, too."

Dramaticrise in cases

According to the Canadian VeterinaryMedical Association, the number of cases ofleptospirosishas risen dramatically in eastern Canada overthe past 20 years. The associationrecommends animals be vaccinated against the most common strains ofthe disease.

Cameron saidthe dog treated recently at his clinicwas diagnosed and treated in time, and is now recuperating at home.

He said rain andrecent flooding in the Ottawa regioncreated ideal conditions for the spread ofleptospirosis.

"Any time you have flooding in any area you have the risk of lepto, because it's carried by raccoons and skunks and they'll urinate there, andwhen that happens it can be an easy transmission to dogs."

Cameron urges dog owners to monitor their pets for symptoms of lethargy, vomiting, diarrhea and frequent urination, and to alert city officials about areas where water is failing to drain properly.