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This topic came up on another board, and I thought it would make a good topic of discussion here.
I have always been very reticent to groom pregnant bitches. Canine Brucellosis is one of the reason. For those who may not be familiar with Brucellosis, it is a disease of the reproductive organs, and causes spontaneous abortion and possible birth defects if any puppies survive. Puppies born alive often die within a few days. The disease also leads to sterility in both dogs and bitches.
Brucellosis can be treated by long term use of antibiotics, but infected dogs still remain carriers, and should be spayed or neutered. They should also be kept seperated from breeding animals, lest they infect them.
Brucellosis is spread by sexual contact, oronasal contact with infected body fluids, contact with aborted fetuses and membranes/fluids, and in kennel situations, can be airborne. It also can infect mother's milk. Dogs have also been known to pick up other strains of brucellosis from livestock.
Canine brucellosis is also contagious to humans. The most common mode of contact is exposure to aborted fetuses, membranes and fluids. Symptoms in humans are flu like.
What makes the disease so insidious is that there are often no symptoms or vague symptoms in dogs. That's why it is so desprately important that breeding animals be tested. The test is a simple blood test, and is relatively inexpensive.
Now, why does that make me hesitant to groom pregnant bitches? Because I don't know if they're infected or not. If they are, they could potentially spread the disease to other dogs. If they are not infected, they could become infected if another dog (or dog fluids) they might come in contact with is infected, thus causing them to lose the litter, or give birth to infected puppies. We try our best to keep things sanitary, but you can't always control who pees on the front steps, and who sniffs or licks it.
If a pregnant bitch is infected, it's also possible to spread the disease to me! And I know far too many people who, intentionally or not, allow their bitches to breed without having been tested for brucellosis. And without the male being tested, either.
Just something to be aware of, and think about.
I have always been very reticent to groom pregnant bitches. Canine Brucellosis is one of the reason. For those who may not be familiar with Brucellosis, it is a disease of the reproductive organs, and causes spontaneous abortion and possible birth defects if any puppies survive. Puppies born alive often die within a few days. The disease also leads to sterility in both dogs and bitches.
Brucellosis can be treated by long term use of antibiotics, but infected dogs still remain carriers, and should be spayed or neutered. They should also be kept seperated from breeding animals, lest they infect them.
Brucellosis is spread by sexual contact, oronasal contact with infected body fluids, contact with aborted fetuses and membranes/fluids, and in kennel situations, can be airborne. It also can infect mother's milk. Dogs have also been known to pick up other strains of brucellosis from livestock.
Canine brucellosis is also contagious to humans. The most common mode of contact is exposure to aborted fetuses, membranes and fluids. Symptoms in humans are flu like.
What makes the disease so insidious is that there are often no symptoms or vague symptoms in dogs. That's why it is so desprately important that breeding animals be tested. The test is a simple blood test, and is relatively inexpensive.
Now, why does that make me hesitant to groom pregnant bitches? Because I don't know if they're infected or not. If they are, they could potentially spread the disease to other dogs. If they are not infected, they could become infected if another dog (or dog fluids) they might come in contact with is infected, thus causing them to lose the litter, or give birth to infected puppies. We try our best to keep things sanitary, but you can't always control who pees on the front steps, and who sniffs or licks it.
If a pregnant bitch is infected, it's also possible to spread the disease to me! And I know far too many people who, intentionally or not, allow their bitches to breed without having been tested for brucellosis. And without the male being tested, either.
Just something to be aware of, and think about.
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