A veterinarian has urged pet owners to vaccinate their dogs as two contracted an infection contagious to humans in recent months.

Laura Tucker, from Endsmeet Animal Hospital and board member of Forget Me Not Canine Centre, said the charity, aimed at finding permanent homes for dogs across Bermuda, identified two puppies from separate litters with leptospirosis before Christmas.

Leptospirosis bacteria can be transmitted to humans through pets, rodents and farm animals that come into contact with food, water or soil contaminated with an infected animal’s urine.

Early symptoms can include eye redness, fever and rashes, but severe untreated cases could result in liver and kidney failure, brain, heart and lung complications and, in rare cases, death.

Dr Tucker said: “One of the infected puppies ended up passing from leptospirosis, but the other one has been treated and is doing OK.”

She added: “We don’t have the facilities to make sure the puppies can quarantine — half the puppies in those litters could have picked it up, and it takes anywhere from two days to three weeks to become an active infection.”

Dr Tucker said dogs should be vaccinated against leptospirosis every year, starting from eight to nine weeks old, as vaccines provide the best protection.

Gemma Petty, another Endsmeet veterinarian and FMNCC board member, writes in an opinion piece today: “In vaccinated dogs, where symptoms are caught early, treatment with antibiotics is an option.

“If you have come into contact with a dog with confirmed leptospirosis, seek advice from your doctor.”

Dr Tucker said that treatment for leptospirosis could range from days to weeks and include IV fluid, a feeding tube and anti-nausea medications and, for humans, dialysis.

She said: “If dogs are unvaccinated and were to contract the disease, death is very common. But we haven’t been seeing a lot of cases in Bermuda up until recently.”

Dr Petty’s article stated that FMNCC needs a permanent facility to quarantine dogs who may carry disease, before they can be sent to foster homes.

She said the space should be secure, centrally located, easy to clean and separate from foster homes.

Kim Wilson, the Minister of Health, told MPs in November that the Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit recorded three cases of leptospirosis in humans between January and November last year, compared with only one in the ten previous years.

At the time, Ms Wilson said there was no link between the three confirmed cases, all of whom received appropriate medical care, and their exposure to the infection.

The Royal Gazette reached out to the Ministry of Health for further information about leptospirosis cases in Bermuda, but did not receive a response by press time.