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Re: [RC] Lack of fresh drinking water on trail/Lepto - Maryanne Gabbani

Leptospirosis is most notably carried by rats and mice, but specifically rats. Used to be called the ratcatcher's disease. Did a lot of research on rat-carried disease when I was managing a pack of terriers for the grain silos.

Maryanne

On Mar 9, 2005, at 4:12 PM, heidi@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx wrote:

I get the humour :) but seriously, I was wondering about this too ever
since I was told that a possible source of Leptospirosis bacteria could
be a beaver-made lake near the trails where I ride. I have always let my
horses drink there. Now I feel like I shouldn't. Maybe it isn't quite
the same as mud puddles.... Given the choice between no water and that
water, I would let the horse drink. But if there is alternative water, I
would definitely go for the alternative. Lepto is pretty scary given its
link to moon blindness. My horse was tested and came back with a
positive for lepto. The exposure could have been from something other
than the "lake" water (we also haev lots of raccoons, and other animals
that can have lepto). She may never get sick but it does make me worry.

I've had a horse go blind due to moon blindness secondary to a lepto
infection. However, we rarely have standing water--the disease is
frequently transmitted by deer and elk, which in winter come by the droves
into our pastures in this part of the world. I suspect this is a much
more likely source of transmission than standing water--the spirochete
that causes lepto is not particularly tenacious about surviving for long
in the environment once it is shed from the host animal.


Heidi



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Maryanne Stroud Gabbani
http://miloflamingo.blogspot.com
http://haramlik.blogspot.com
http://www.alsorat.com
http://homepage.mac.com/msgabbani


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Replies
Re: [RC] Lack of fresh drinking water on trail, Lysane Cree
Re: [RC] Lack of fresh drinking water on trail, heidi