Adopting a dog with ehrlichiosis antibodies: Is it safe to proceed?

Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! As long as your dog has been treated and is now healthy, there should not be any long term effects of the infection. However, in the future, testing for these infections may be difficult, as false positive results are possible. Your dog may be a carrier of Anaplasmosis and Ehrlichia life long, but this disease is not transmitted to humans. You should be careful if you are planning to, or have, another dog. I hope this helps and that all is well!

I'm sorry for your frustration, but there may be a solution. Most veterinarians use the Antibody test to detect Ehrlichia. Even with treatment, your dog may show a positive test for months or up to a year as the antibody is still being detected. In order to more accurately test if your dog has the disease, the newer blood test called a PCR assay can be submitted. This tests specifically for presence of the organism , not the antibodies. Please speak with your veterinarian about doing a different test as you may wait a very long time for the antibody test to be negative. I'm sure the newer test is probably more expensive, so be prepared to ask about the cost. Best of luck!

It is possible but very rare for the test to be wrong (false positive) - repeat testing in 2-3weeks would provide more information. The test looks for antibodies (made by the dogs immune system in response to infection), some dogs become what is termed 'sub-clinical' - infected but without any clinical signs or alterations in blood cells, a phase which can last months or years before signs of disease are detected; regular blood counts should be considered to monitor for changes in such cases

If Lacey was found to be positive on a routine screening test as part of her yearly exam, it could be indicative of exposure to Ehrlichia but not an active infection. Ehrlichia is a type of tick borne disease that infects the white blood cells in a dog. If she isn't sick, I would recommend she have a blood test done called a complete blood cell count, or CBC. This measures and examines the red and white blood cells. If normal, she has been exposed and no further treatment is needed at this time. If abnormal her veterinarian may start her on a course of an antibiotic (doxycycline).

Hello, and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. You're right that Ghontu tested positive for Ehrlichia - but keep in mind that is an "antibody" test, meaning it tests for *exposure* to a disease and doesn't necessarily mean she has Ehrlichia. If a dog is exposed to Ehrlichia and their immune system does its job and successfully clears the body of the Ehrlichia infection, they will still show a positive result on that test. So it's not cause for panic! I defer to your regular vet to determine how worried they are, based on Ghontu's exam and other findings. If they feel treatment is appropriate, they will probably start Ghontu on a 4-week course of medication. The ALP is a bit elevated, but that elevation is quite mild and wouldn't have me too worried. Again, I would defer to your usual vet. But unless they had reason to worry about the ALP specifically, I wouldn't think twice about that ALP value. Hope this helps!

Erhlicha can be a tricky disease in that it can remain dormant in a dog and then suddenly cause issues like significant anemia. The safest route is to pursue the additional tests to see if Lola has an active infection.

Hi there. Thanks for rescuing Fallon from the shelter. I would not treat him for Ehrlichia unless he was showing symptoms. Did he have the PCR test or the antibody test? I can tell you that many, many, many dogs test positive but we do not treat unless they have the clinical signs. This is because a positive test only indicates exposure and not clinical disease. Lethargy or "calmness" is not really considered a symptom. He would have to be showing more than that such as: 1. inappetence 2. enlarged lymph nodes 3. decreased platelet count on bloodwork 4. elevated globulin count on bloodwork 5. fever Here is a link to an article about Ehrlichia that may answer more of your questions. http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?A=2103 If you still have more questions after reading that you are welcome to post again. Best wishes!