A Case Report of Canine Ehrlichia Infection in a Labrador Dog and its Therapeutic Management

Abstract

Ehrlichiosis is an important protozoan disease in canine caused by an intracellular gram – negative bacteria of the genus Ehrlichia, under the family Anaplasmataceae. The important species under the genus Ehrlichia are E. canis, E. ewingii and E. chaffeensis. Another two bacteria within the family Anaplasmataceae are Anaplasma platys (Syn: E. platys) and A. phagocytophilum ; on the other hand, E. platys and A. phagocytophilum are synonymous. Prevalence of ehrlichiosis remains high in north eastern region of India especially Assam but it remains undiagnosed due to lack of owner’s awareness. The incidences of ehrlichiosis in dog in Guwahati caused by E. canis and E. platys are recorded which are primarily responsible for canine monocytic ehrlichiosis and canine thrombocytic as well as granulocytic ehrlichiosis, respectively. A case of ehrlichiosis in canine was diagnosed based on clinical signs, blood smear examination and polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The dog was treated with two doses of diminazine diaceturate deep intramuscularly at 48 hours interval and doxycycline tablet orally for one month besides supportive therapy rendered during the period. After a month of treatment the dog showed recovery and by two months it recovered completely. Thus it can be inferred that, doxycycline along with other supportive medication for about a month could cure a critical case of canine ehrlichiosis.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/bjvm.v12i2.21298 Bangl. J. Vet. Med. (2014). 12 (2): 237-239