The importance of picking up dog poop is especially visible in the spring when the snow melts and it becomes clear how much feces has been left in the snow during the winter.
In recent weeks, dogs suffering from vomiting and diarrhea have been over represented at the clinic.
Bacteria and viruses that live in feces do not necessarily die in freezing temperatures (especially considering that they are preserved frozen in laboratories).
About a year and a half ago, leptospirosis—new to Finland—arrived and is here to stay. Previously it has been diagnosed only from dogs that had been traveling, but now it was found in dogs that had never been abroad. It spreads through feces and urine (especially if an animal drinks from puddles) and is an extremely dangerous disease for dogs. It is also a zoonosis (meaning it can be transmitted from dogs to humans), so people can become ill as well.
Symptoms in dogs: fever, fatigue, vomiting, diarrhea, and jaundice are possible. The severity can range from an asymptomatic carrier to a fatal systemic infection.
Symptoms in humans: cold-like symptoms as well as vomiting and diarrhea.
However, a vaccine has been developed for dogs against this disease. Please contact us (+45 1525250) so we can start a vaccination program against leptospirosis as well.