SINGAPORE - Alfie, a two-year-old dog, started losing his appetite and becoming lethargic on Jan 10, prompting his owner Joyce Tse to take him to the vet a day later.
A week later, on Jan 17, the cavapoo – a cross between a cavalier king charles spaniel and a miniature poodle or toy poodle – had a cardiac arrest and died. He had been in intensive care for two days before that.
“It’s a lot of pain, we are struggling still” was all Ms Tse, 34, a human resources manager, could manage when asked about her pet’s death.
Blood tests revealed that Alfie had been infected with leptospirosis, a bacterial infection primarily spread through the urine of rodents. It can affect both animals and humans.
Vets whom The Straits Times spoke to said there has been a spike in cases of leptospirosis over the past month.
Dr Esther Lam from the Paws N’ Claws veterinary surgery clinic in Sin Ming said she used to see one suspected case of leptospirosis every few months, but she has been seeing at least two suspected cases weekly since early December 2023.
Responding to queries from ST, the Animal and Veterinary Service (AVS) said it was notified of four confirmed cases of leptospirosis in the past two weeks. This is compared with an average of fewer than 20 reported cases each year, from 2021 to 2023, said the services’ group director Kelvin Lim.
Dr Lim said that the recent reports were from the Upper Thomson and neighbouring Shunfu areas, and that both AVS and the National Environment Agency are investigating the matter.
He added: “AVS has sent a circular to all veterinarians to inform them of the leptospirosis cases, and to remind them to report any suspected or confirmed cases of leptospirosis.
“There have been no reported human cases of leptospirosis associated with the recent animal cases.”
Leptospirosis was gazetted as a notifiable disease in 2016 by the Ministry of Health, which means that doctors encountering cases of the disease in humans are required to notify the ministry.
The disease is also listed in the Schedule of the Animals and Birds (Disease) Notification, requiring vets and pet owners to report suspected or confirmed cases to AVS.
Humans and animals can be infected by the leptospira bacteria through cuts and abrasions on the skin or coming into contact with the urine and bodily fluids of infected animals.
“Indirect infection can occur through contact with water or wet soil contaminated with the urine of infected animals,” said Dr Lim.
Symptoms of the disease in dogs can include fever, vomiting, diarrhoea and an inability to pass urine, while infected humans may experience fever, headaches and muscle aches, abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhoea and rashes.
While the majority of human cases are asymptomatic or display only mild symptoms, the disease can worsen and prove fatal, such as the case of a 21-year-old full-time national serviceman who died in 2017.
Ms Tse suspects Alfie had been infected by rats in her neighbourhood in Upper Thomson.
“We noticed there are rats around the estate, and perhaps due to the increase in rainfall, there might have been more contaminated water on grass patches where Alfie caught the illness,” she said.
AVS has advised dog owners to keep their dogs’ leptospirosis vaccinations updated and to reduce their exposure to water or soil that may be contaminated.
Dr Lim said: “The vaccine reduces the chance of the dog being infected and helps prevent the shedding of bacteria in its urine.”
Alfie had been vaccinated for the disease as recently as Dec 27, 2023, said Ms Tse. She later learnt from the vet that the vaccine protected the dog against only four strains of the bacteria.
Ms Tse said: “I would urge all dog owners to protect their dogs in their day-to-day activities, for example, shorten the length of walks, avoid playing in places with water patches, reduce interaction with other dogs.”
