While the territory remains COVID-19 free the acting head of the Veterinary Clinic at the Department of Agriculture Tanya Tarasawa is sounding an alarm bell on an infectious disease that is spread from rats to dogs and to humans.
This is leptospirosis, a bacterial disease that can cause a wide range of symptoms including high fevers, headaches, chills, muscle aches, vomiting, jaundice , red eyes and abdominal pain. If not diagnosed and treated, it can cause death. A common carrier of the disease is rats.
Tarasawa reports that they are seeing an outbreak of leptospirosis among dogs being seen at the clinic.
She says due to the rain rats are moving into or around homes to stay warm and find food.
When people go to work they just dump bowls of dog food so the dogs or puppies can eat while they’re away.
Tarasawa says When the food is not all consumed, the rats move in and contaminate the leftovers with the Leptospira bacteria causing a puppy, a whole litter of puppies or a dog to contract the infectious disease.
She explains that Leptospirosis is a zoonotic disease, which means it can spread from animals to people.
Tarasawa advises that pet owners and veterinary staff should be careful when caring for an infected dog.
Precautions such as face masks, gloves, and regular hand-washing are recommended to avoid getting infected urine in the eyes, nose, or mouth, or on broken skin.
Careful disposal of soiled bedding is recommended, as well as thorough disinfection of contaminated areas. (1 part Clorox to 10 parts Water is recommended.)
Any person feeling unwell after exposure to an infected dog should seek medical attention.
Tarasawa said there’s an urgent need to solve this problem by spaying and neutering to control he pet population. She points out that the clinic is overwhelmed with animals and the territory desperately needs a US certified veterinarian to help.
Its been a year and 7 months since the former US vet Dr. Kristen Jensen left the territory, said Tarasawa, so the population of unwanted puppies and unfixed female dogs are the animals that you see dumped or roaming the streets now.
“We have no controlled drugs to euthanize the suffering animals that only a U.S. Certified Veterinarian with a DEA LICENSE can order and purchase,” she said.
