Healthy dog tested positive for Ehrlichia. How to clear for travel?

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

As she recently suffers from Erlichiosis it is normal for her to test positive in such a test, her body created a large quantity of antibodies during the active stage of the disease and the antibodies will remain for several years in her system, this does not mean she is still suffering from the disease.

Hello and thank you for your post! I am sorry to hear that Spock has ehrlichia. This disease is treatable and can be cured. However, you should know that the test most veterinary clinics use is a snap test to detect antibodies against ehrlichia. If you are going back in 3 weeks to have this same test performed, Spock will likely continue to show a positive result. This is because his body has made antibodies against ehrlichia. If he had a previous infection and ehrlichia is not causing any of these symptoms, he will still show positive on this SNAP test so if you are going in to have the same SNAP test performed I would have your veterinarian send out a tick fever PCR test to the laboratory. This will detect DNA to ehrlichia and not antibodies. If Spock is positive on the PCR, it means that he has a current active infection. If you do not know if Spock has ever had your licio previously, I would still treat this with Doxycycline for 4 to 6 weeks total treatment time. I hope this helps, please feel free to contact me with any further questions or concerns you may have. I am also available via consultation

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!

If Buddy was already treated for me canines and is clinically normal right now I would not worry about a positive test result. You can discuss with his vet but many tests are for antibodies to the disease. Which will still be circulating in the blood from the initial infection. It does not necessarily mean there is an active infection at this time.

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!