Ottawa vet warning dog owners about potentially deadly disease

Sandra Abma - CBC News

Dogs can contract leptospirosis by drinking from water sources contaminated with urine from infected animals. (Frank Augstein/Associated Press)

 

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

Leptospirosis is a bacterial disease that causes vomiting, diarrhea and severe weight loss in animals. Without treatment it 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 been contaminated with the urine of other animals, such as puddles in dog parks.

Dr. Ian Cameron knows the symptoms of leptospirosis first-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 really nauseous for a long time."...http://www.cbc.ca/amp/1.4414595