Ehrlichiosis In Dogs – Is Your Dog At Risk?

1. Ehrlichiosis In Dogs - Is Your Dog At Risk? Ehrlichiosis is a Canine Vector-Borne Disease (CVBD) which is transmitted in dogs by infected ticks. These infected ticks carry bacteria called Rickettsia/ Ehrlichia spp. that are responsible for causing Ehrlichiosis in dogs. There are three different species of this deadly bacteria that specifically target canines: Ehrlichia Canis, Ehrlichia chaffeensis and Ehrlichia ewingii. These organisms traverse the blood cells of the dog’s body and destroy the platelets which are involved in the clotting of blood. Ehrlichia can also reside in the bone marrow, liver, spleen and lymph nodes of an infected dog.

2. Species of Ticks That Transmit Ehrlichiosis in Dogs Ehrlichiosis, a tick-borne disease, as we all know, is transmitted by tick bites but which all tick species cause this illness in canines? Here is the answer – A brown dog tick (Rhipicephalus sanguineus) is majorly responsible for transmitting this life-threatening disease in dogs. However, there are many other species like Ixodes, Amblyomma and Otobius as well that can infect canines. How The Illness Progresses In Dogs? There are three different stages in which the intensity of this disease is divided. These are mainly – acute, sub-clinical and chronic. These multiple presentations make the diagnosis of the disease quite challenging. Furthermore, if the dog has been bitten by a different tick species as well, chances are the dog may suffer from two or more tick-borne diseases which further complicate the overall diagnosis and treatment. Talking about the progression of the Ehrlichiosis in dogs, here are the symptoms that are associated with the aforementioned stages. Acute – Clinical signs appear 1-3 weeks after the pet is bitten by the tick. Your dog may experience lethargy and can become anorexic. Fever can also phase in with the enlarged lymph nodes. At this stage, the platelet count reduces drastically and the dog may sometimes experience bleeding as well. Because it is just the onset of the disease, canines treated at this stage recover easily. Sub-clinical or Sub-Acute Phase At this stage of the disease, there are no apparent symptoms of the disease; however, the organism is still present inside the pet’s body. It is the worst phase to diagnose the illness because of being asymptomatic. However, blood tests can still reveal the presence of the disease through abnormal levels of immune proteins, thrombocytopenia and low blood count. Chronic Phase Chronic stage is very dangerous when the disease spreads itself to most of the parts of the body. Dogs at this stage of the disease can be found severely ill. They experience weight loss, thrombocytopenia, lethargy, eye problems, neurological problems, bleeding, bone- marrow suppression and may even collapse.

3. Diagnosis of Ehrlichiosis Diagnosis in the very early stage of the infection can give false negative even when the organism is present in the body. It is only after 2 weeks or so that the tests may give true results because by then the body would have produced antibodies against the E. Canis. Only, detection of these antibodies coupled with the normal symptoms of Ehrlichiosis can give help diagnose the condition. However, sometimes the ELISA test or PCR Essay can be found helpful in the detection of this infection. Treatment and Prevention Apparent symptoms like bleeding can be treated by blood transfusion. Apart from that, a vet may also give some antibiotics to clear the clinical signs. However, there is no appropriate treatment for this disease which is why it is imperative to save your dog by securing him with preventatives. Flea and tick preventatives that protect the dog from getting bitten by these parasites is thus the best way to protect your canine from Tick- borne diseases like Ehrlichiosis. Apart from that, every time you take your dog out, make sure you check him for ticks after coming back. Whenever you find a tick, pluck it gently with a tweezer else take professional help to remove it. Moreover, stay informed about the tick-borne diseases that are rife in your area. And make sure you pay regular visits to your vet for the pet’s routine check-up. All these small yet significant precautions can help you combat any deadly pet disease. Just choose a good preventative that suits your furry along with these measures and stick to it. You won’t regret sure! If you don’t know which product to choose, check this link.