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AVS, NEA investigating spike in leptospirosis infections among dogs in Upper Thomson area

2024-01-26 00:00:00.0 海峡时报-新加坡原网页

SINGAPORE - Alfie, a two-year-old dog, started losing its appetite and becoming lethargic on Jan 10, prompting its owner Joyce Tse to take it to the vet a day later.

But just 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. It had been in intensive care for two days before that.

“It’s a lot of pain, we are struggling still”, was all the 34-year-old 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 that there has been a spike in cases of leptospirosis over the last 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 Services (AVS) said that 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.

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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.”

Ms Tse suspects Alfie had been infected by rats in her neighbourhood in Upper Thomson.

“We noticed there are rats around the estate but, perhaps due to the increase in rainfall, there might have been more contaminated water on grass patches where Alfie caught the illness,” she said.

Alfie, a two-year-old cavapoo, started losing its appetite and becoming lethargic on Jan 10, prompting its owner Joyce Tse to take it to the vet a day later. PHOTO: COURTESY OF MS JOYCE TSE

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 rash.