Leptospirosis
What is Leptospirosis?
Leptospirosis (Lepto) was reported infecting animals who swim in, or drink from still water including ponds, lakes and puddles, contaminated from rodent (notoriously rats) and wild animal urine containing Leptospira. The toxin can enter human and animal bodies through mucus membranes (mouth and nose) and open wounds.
Densely populated urban areas, areas prone to floods or natural disasters contaminating water sources, and regions with poor sanitation, are contributing factors increasing the lepto contamination.
The lepto toxin, categorized as a bacteria, doesn’t survive in moving water. It’s said to prefer warm, moist environments, during rainy seasons and in tropical climates and survive 180 days in wet soil or marshy areas.
Pets dying from lepto is rare but possible. The key is catching on to any symptoms (list below), get your dog tested and supported immediately. “Contraction” means the body is too weak in fighting the toxin at the moment of contact with it, allowing toxic takeover. In this case, the lepto toxin can make your dog miserably sick for two to three weeks, and if they’re left untreated, especially alongside illnesses contributing to an already weakened immune system, it can be life threatening.
Healthy dogs coming in contact with lepto may never exhibit any symptoms, and with a healthy immune system, it’s possible that they could come in contact with lepto, but their body can fight it off (not let it take over) and you’d never know they had it. This is the case with all pathogens (bacteria, viruses, fungi and pathogens).
Realistically, we’re all (animals and humans) made up of bacteria, viruses and fungi. It’s when they take over our body, when our body becomes imbalanced. This is one reason you only want to give antibiotics for a life or death situation (such as leptosporosis). Over-administration of antibiotics, in which your dog is NOT in a life or death situation, kills the good bacteria making up your dog’s microbiome, weakens their immunity and leaves them a lot more prone to pathogen take-over of any kind down the road (yeast overgrowth, staph infections, lepto, you name it). One round of antibiotics can take up to two years for your dog’s microbiome to recover.
I prefer to keep my dogs away from still bodies of water and only let them go in moving bodies of water such as rivers, creeks and oceans. This is one way to help prevent your dog(s) contracting lepto. When I see puddles, I walk the dogs around them, or if that’s impossible I make sure they don’t have the time/opportunity to drink from them (running them through puddle areas to keep them from being able to drink it, tugging their leash to keep them moving past the puddles).
Lepto, labelled as a Zoonotic disease, means it’s transmittable from animals to humans, in humans with compromised immunity who come in contact with an infected animal urine via contaminated waters. The highest prevalence of human toxicity from lepto has been in the Phillipines as a result of landslides and floods contaminating the water. Last year, in 2024, the US had 26 reported human cases and they were all in New York City where there’s a large rat population. Zero deaths from lepto were reported in humans in the U.S. last year. India (Kerala) had a tenfold increase of human deaths from lepto. This is likely due from heavy rainfall leading to persistent water logging creating ideal conditions for lepto to thrive, compounded with inadequate waste disposal practices, a lack of public awareness about lepto leading to delayed treatment or misdiagnoses.
Signs of Leptospirosis in Dogs:
fever (anything above 103 degrees fahrenheit taken rectally) may be accompanied by shivering or trembling, decreased energy, nasal discharge, glassy eyes, warm ears
vomiting
lethargy
sudden decrease of appetite
increased thirst or urination (signs of kidney issues)
jaundice (yellow eyes or gums)
muscle pain or stiffness
Typically, dogs with lepto exhibit more than one of the symptoms listed above. These symptoms can also be found in dogs without lepto while still being signs to seek an animal health professional. If your dog was around any still bodies of water, including puddles, and exhibits these symptoms the following week, take your dog to your local vet as soon as possible.
Testing
If your dog was in still water and exhibits any symptoms of lepto, take them to the closest vet as soon as possible. Ask if they have the PCR Test (Polymerase Chain Reaction). It detects the actual baterial DNA in blood or urine and is great for early detection, before antibodies form. PCR can identify an active infection, even in vaccinated dogs while other tests like the MAT test can’t always distingush between lepto vaccine antibodies and actual infection. PCR test is often used in combination with the MAT test. MAT test can sometimes require too much time before taking action because of using paired samples spread out 2-4 weeks. Because of this, oftentimes vets will treat based on suspicion. If lepto is suspected, treatment should happen ASAP.
If the Lepto Toxin Becomes Life-Threatening
In the rare chance your pet gets diagnosed with lepto and it becomes life threatening, Dr. Jean Dodds advises “since it’s a bacterium and not a virus” you’re better off giving antibiotics if it arises rather than giving the vaccine, suggesting “Doxycycline and tetracycline have been found to cure the disease if it becomes life threatening.”
If your dog’s lepto toxicity isn’t life threatening, antibiotics aren’t necessary and you can work with a homeopathic vet or herbalist in supporting your pet if you suspect they’re sick from lepto.
Rawlinson (Doglistener) agrees with Dr. Dodds, writing “Leptospirosis is easily treated. Doxycycline is the antibiotic of choice and has the ability, even in renal compromise, to effectively rid the urinary tract of Leptospira infection. Doxycycline can be safely administered to dogs with renal insufficiency and will clear the organism from the kidneys, making it effective in both the infection of the blood and urine.”
Lepto Vaccine Options
A lepto vaccine for cattle, called Leptoshield, is given to cattle, sheep, goats and deer. It comes in a “Shield 5” or “3-way”, claiming the numbers equal the amount of strains the vaccine protects against. We’re told cattle, like dogs, can die from lepto, and similar with the case of lepto in dogs, this became news after they started vaccinating cattle for lepto.
Two lepto vaccines for dogs, labeled Lepto2 and Lepto4, claim in protecting against 2 and 4 lepto strains, respectively. You may hear, or be told, Lepto2 has a less aggressive reaction but it’s a myth, as both produce aggressive reactions.
Even with Lepto4, supposedly covering more strains, Dr. Jean Dodds, DVM, points out, the vaccine makers claim it’s effective for four strains, while seven strains have been found dangerous to dogs health and at least hundreds of strains exist in total.
Why wouldn’t all mammals be offered a vaccine with protection against all seven strains? Why the variation in lepto vaccines? With more patents, and more varying marketing strategies, the more money the pharmaceutical companies make.
Will the vaccine protect against two or four strains of lepto? Makers tell us lepto vaccines aren’t 100% effective. Are the risks of your pet dying from the vaccine worth the rare chance lepto kill them? Voluntarily and consistently exposing your pet to a lepto vaccine seems more dangerous.
Effective preventative, and not deadly, measure exist in protecting your dog from outside toxins, and no needle injection necessary.
How about Human and Cat Lepto Vaccines?
The risk-to-benefit ratio for a lepto vaccine is high enough to justify NOT giving it to humans here in the U.S. Why are our furry family members still getting it?
Here are the risks and why the U.S. (and most countries) don’t use one for humans:
1. Strain Specificity (Limited Coverage)
Most vaccines target a limited number of serovars (types of Leptospira).
There are over 250 known serovars.
If someone is exposed to a strain not covered by the vaccine, it might not help.
2. Short-Term Immunity
The protection tends to fade within 1–2 years.
This means you'd need frequent boosters, which isn’t practical
3. Mild to Moderate Side Effects
Some older versions, used on humans in a few countries including China and Cuba, caused reactions like fever and malaise, especially when multiple boosters were given.
4. Low Prevalence in Most Regions
In many countries, leptospirosis is rare enough that broad human vaccination isn’t considered necessary or cost-effective.
Prevention strategies focus more on environmental management, rodent control, and protective gear for workers.
As for cats, a lepto vaccine doesn’t exist and there doesn’t seem to be a direct answer as to exactly why. The general conclusion is they don’t show any signs of contraction, and some sources report cats as resistant. Interesting correlation being the pets not getting vaccinated for lepto, aren’t getting lepto at all.
The Second Deadliest Vaccine
Lepto vaccines became available to dogs in North America in 2001. In 2021, Veterinary Public Health noted a significant increase in reported confirmed and suspected lepto cases. In the UK, Canine Health Concern conducted a survey and found the vaccine is causing the disease it’s claiming to prevent, and lepto vaccines have made the bacteria more prevalent.
The vaccination’s contents, excreted through animal urine, is creating a toxic threat to other animals contacting their urine. So your dog can catch lepto through another lepto vaccinated dog’s urine.
The leptospirosis vaccine, the second deadliest vaccination, produces the most adverse reactions in dogs behind the rabies vaccine. The lepto and rabies vaccines, considered “killed, or inactivated" vaccines, contain extra heavy metals as adjuvants.
Veterinarians claim the lepto vaccine to be a “short-lived vaccine”, meaning vets encourage two doses “to prime the system” and yearly shots, despite high adverse reactions. By following this regimen, you’re consistently exposing your dog to a massive toxic load and risking their life.
Plus, I’ve had a dog client experience sickness from lepto bacteria within a year after receiving the vaccine, and this is not unheard of.
Leptospirosis Vaccines Side Effects
High rates of adverse reactions are reported from the lepto vaccine, especially in miniature dog breeds.
Documented cases show antigens contained in the lepto vaccine create the same toxic symptoms it’s claiming as preventing.
The following are common side effects following the leptospirosis vaccine:
Seizures
Anaphylaxis
Aggression
Behavioral issues
Ataxia (inability to move)
No red blood cells
No white blood cells
Low platelets
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)
Polyarthritis
Liver necrosis
Facial paralysis
Lethargy
Depression
Loss of appetite
Diarrhea
Fever
Increased thirst and urination
Blood in urine
Jaundice (yellow tinge in mouth lining or whites of eyes)
Rapid breathing
Rapid, irregular pulse
Coughing up blood
Tarry feces
Nosebleed
Red or purple spots on the skin
Tumors
Autoimmune disorders
Uncontrollable itching
Dehydration
Pain
Enlarged lymph nodes
Chronic weight loss
Dermatitis
Pancreatitis
Liver failure
Kidney failure
Mast cell disease
Enlarged spleen
Cirrhosis
Cancer
Death
Preventative Measures for Lepto Vaccine Damage and Lepto Toxin
Detoxing Heavy Metals
Detoxing heavy metals supports your pet’s overall health, and is critical if they’ve been vaccinated. Heavy metals weaken the body’s systems, are neurotoxic and cause organ stagnation, making the body vulnerable to pathogens.
After detoxing heavy metals, organ function increases, the body’s elimination channels are strengthened, toxins can be excreted more quickly, and vitamin and mineral assimilation enhances.
A heavy metal detox following lepto vaccine helps prevent rapid health decline associated with the vaccine’s heavy metal overload.
High aluminum levels, used as a main adjuvant, in the lepto vaccine, is concerning and to blame for many of the vaccine’s more lethal, or debilitating, side effects. Aluminum foreign body has been found in tumor biopsies of vaccinated dogs with cancer.
Diet
Maintaining your pet on a balanced, fresh, whole foods diet is number one in nourishing their health, for sustaining strong organs, blood and immunity (all connected) in preventing toxins from taking over.
Essential amino acids are named “essential” because your pet’s body doesn’t generate them on its own and they’re necessary for cellular function and overall health. Together, essential amino acids and non-essential amino acids play an important role in immune function and nutrient transportation.
The source, quality and digestibility of proteins matter. Protein in kibble food is not recognized the same in your pet’s body as fresh, whole meats. Protein in kibble comes from poor quality sources, and heat treated into a dehydrated form converted to sugar in your dogs body. Kibble foods protein lacks moisture, taxing the kidneys. When kidneys are taxed the liver overworks.
Essential fatty acids including Camelina and green lipped muscle omega-3 oils. Disease, pathogens and cancer thrive off inflammation. Omega-3s help keep inflammation down. Critical fat soluble vitamins like A, E, D and K need fats for absorption.
Choose whole food vitamins and mineral sources, not synthetic vitamins. Synthetic (lab created) vitamins aren’t bioavailable, often contain toxic preservatives or fillers, and are recognized as a toxin by the liver making it work harder. Whole food vitamins and minerals are properly recognized, received and absorbed.
Dogs synthesize their own vitamin C, but during stress, disease and following vaccination, your dog’s liver health becomes compromised and decreases their C production. Dogs need a healthy liver in synthesizing adequate vitamin C levels. Use a whole food source of C like amla or acerola fruit supplements naturally high vitamin C and bioflavonoids.
Lifestyle
Along with a healthy diet, maintaining a low stress environment and ensuring daily exercise is critical in supporting your pet’s health. Pets need at least 30 minutes of outside movement daily.
Chronic stress produces a vast range of ill effects including excess cortisol production, wearing out the kidneys, thyroid and adrenals, and depleting the immune system. Remember, your stress becomes their stress. Keeping your stress in check helps your pet.
Maintaining Strong Kidney and Liver Health
The lepto vaccine is a severe liver toxin, causing cirrhosis, and leading to acute or chronic kidney or liver failure and death in at least 20% of vaccination reaction cases (Note: This statistic is reported cases and may be higher as not all vaccine reactions are reported or recognized as correlated with the vaccine).
The lepto pathogen itself is a liver toxin and keeping your pet’s liver and kidneys as strong as possible is critical in preventing pathogens from taking over.
You can look for subtle signs (lists below) indicating the kidneys or liver need support, and address them holistically before anything serious shows up.
Regular at home health maintenance checks help you support your pet and strengthen their defenses before toxic overload threatens their life.
Signs of Liver Weakness:
Yellow gums
Yellow in whites of eyes
Lipomas (fatty lumps)
Restless or pacing nightly between 11pm and 3am
Anger/aggression/irritability
Yellow drainage from the eye
Reoccurring conjunctivitis
Signs of Kidney Weakness:
Laying down to eat
Paddling in sleep
Weakness in hind legs
Chronic ear infections
Reoccurring urinary tract infections (UTIs)
Skin pigment discoloration on the nose
Unhealthy, rotting teeth or teeth demineralization
Chronic anxiety
The above signs may seem subtle or harmless to your dog now, but addressing them sooner than later by adding supportive remedies, prevents more serious consequences (organ failure) later on.
Supportive Remedies if Your Dog Received the Lepto Vaccine, or in Helping Prevent Lepto Toxicity
If your pet already received the lepto vaccine, the below remedies are highly recommended. If you adopted your dog, ask for vaccination records in finding out whether your dog received the lepto vaccine previously.
The remedies below strengthen your pet’s health and can help prevent toxins like lepto from taking over their health.
For all of the remedies below, consult a professional for what’s a best fit for your dog as an individual. Your dog’s energetics, and the herb’s energetics, must be considered when selecting optimal herbal remedies for your dog. For example, Dandelion is cooling so would not be a good fit for a dog who runs cool to cold energetically.
Whole Plant Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) Tincture
Dandelion stimulates the urinary system, helping prevent UTIs following vaccination. It increases the liver’s bile production and increases bile flow into the gallbladder, aiding digestive and detoxification functions.
The lepto vaccine causes stagnation in the lymphatic system and Dandelion stimulates the lymphatic system, increasing waste excretion and helping the assimilate nutrients, and calming, or preventing, enlarged lymph nodes (lyphadenopathy).
Dogs with liver congestion and several forms of liver insufficiency including dogs who’ve received the lepto vaccine, should turn to Dandelion.
Dandelion, calming liver inflammation, is specific for cases of congestive jaundice, yellowed eyes and gums, caused by the lepto vaccine. It assists in soothing, or preventing, chronic skin eruptions common following liver stagnation.
Dandelion assists in pharmaceutical detoxification from the liver and kidneys. If your pet has a history of taking pharmaceutical drugs, it compounds their risk for vaccination damage.
Suggested Dosages:
Administer away from food (30 minutes before eating or two hours after eating) twice daily
Extra-Small Dogs: 1 drop
Small Dogs: 6 drops
Medium Dogs: 9 drops
Large Dogs: 11 drops
Extra-Large Dogs: 13 drops
Milk Thistle (Silybum marianum) Seeds
Milk thistle protects the liver from toxins and helps regenerate the liver if damage has been done. It helps stabilize mast cells, a contributing factor to severe vaccine reactions.
The sympathetic (stress, or “fight or flight”) nervous system state is triggered from vaccination, and can make it difficult for your dog to relax or calm down, eventually leading to a weakened immune system. Milk Thistle contains prolactin, offering immune system support and calming the body’s stress response.
Suggested Dosages:
Mix into meals twice daily
Extra-Small Dogs: 1/8 tsp
Small Dogs: 1/4 tsp
Medium Dogs: 1/2 tsp
Large Dogs: 3/4 tsp
Extra-Large Dogs: 1 tsp
Artichoke (Cyanara scolymus) Phytoembryonic Therapy. Mother Extract
Considering lepto and the lepto vaccine are liver toxins, Artichoke leaf helps protect the liver and is used in primary or secondary liver problems. It has similar actions to Milk Thistle seeds, and when combined, the two produce a synergistic effect, meaning they’ll enhance each other’s effectiveness.
Suggested Dosages:
Administer away from food twice daily
Extra-Small Dogs: 2 drops
Small Dogs: 4 drops
Medium Dogs: 7 drops
Large Dogs: 10 drops
Extra-Large Dogs: 13 drops
Stinging Nettles (Urtica Dioica) Infusion
Daily nettles infusions help restore the adrenals, supports the kidneys, helps rejuvenate blood health, detoxifies and is nutritive, providing vitamins and minerals to your pet.
Nettles strengthens and fortifies the whole body, preventing a vast array of vaccination side effects from manifesting deeper.
Note: If your dog experiences urinary incontinence while taking Nettle, their kidneys need more support; pause administration while addressing kidney health.
Suggested Infusion Dosages:
Mix into food twice daily
Extra-Small Dogs: 1 tsp
Small Dogs: 2 tsp
Medium Dogs: 1 1/2 tbsp
Large Dogs: 2 tbsp
Extra-Large Dogs: 3 tbsp
Juniper (Juniperus communis) Phytoembryonic Therapy Mother Extract
Juniper helps regenerate liver cells and detoxifies the kidneys, helping reset organ function. If signs of kidney or liver weakness from the lists above are present following vaccination, an eight week Juniper administration is well indicated.
Juniper phytoembryonic therapy helps flush pharmaceutical drugs from your dog’s body; it isn’t recommended alongside pharmaceuticals.
Suggested Dosages:
Administer away from food twice daily
Extra-Small Dogs: 1 drop
Small Dogs: 3 drops
Medium Dogs: 7 drops
Large Dogs: 9 drops
Extra-Large Dogs: 11 drops
Important Note: More is not better. Don’t administer large doses of Juniper or give more than eight weeks at a time. With prolonged use or overdosing, Juniper becomes overstimulating to the kidneys and may cause kidney damage. Pets with kidney disease should avoid Juniper.
Burdock Root (Arctium lappa) Tincture
For dogs having a hard time eating following the lepto vaccine, Burdock helps with digestion and appetite.
Used in conjunction with Astragalus, Burdock offers strong immune system support.
Assisting the liver and kidneys in detoxification, Burdock cleanses the blood and improves indicators of systemic imbalance following the lepto vaccine including skin problems such as dry and scaly patches, dandruff and rheumatism.
Suggested Dosages:
Administer away from food twice daily
Extra-Small Dogs: 2 drops
Small Dogs: 3 drops
Medium Dogs: 6 drops
Large Dogs: 8 drops
Extra-Large Dogs: 10 drops
Note: Avoid administering Burdock tincture for more than eight weeks at a time.
Astragalus (Astragalus membranaceus) Root Tincture
Astragalus, an immunomodulator, regulates an over-active or under-active immune system. It intensifies phagocytosis (cells destroying toxins) in liver, spleen and lung systems, helping prevent spleen enlargement, breathing problems, cirrhosis and cancer arising from vaccination.
Astragalus has been used in combination with drug therapies in reducing toxicity and ameliorating side effects. It can treat low white blood cell count and helps restore depleted red blood cell formation in bone marrow, for dogs who experience red and/or white blood cell depletion common following the lepto vaccine.
A liver protectant, Astragalus helps prevent, or lower, high liver enzymes common from the lepto vaccine.
Suggested Dosages:
Administer away from food twice daily
Extra-Small Dogs: 5 drops
Small Dogs: 8 drops
Medium Dogs: 11 drops
Large Dogs: 16 drops
Extra-Large Dogs: 18 drops
Maritime Pine (Pinus pinaster) Tincture
High in pycnogenol, a powerful antioxidant, Maritime Pine is critical in tumor prevention, helping lower oxidative stress and reducing inflammation.
Suggested Tincture Dosage: 1/2 ml per 20 pounds 2x daily away from food
Decaffinated Green Tea (Camellia sinensis) Powder
Decaf green tea capsules contain high levels of EGCG polyphenols, a potent antioxidant helping prevent cancer.
An herb with unlimited potential, green tea boosts the immune system, relieves stagnation, helping eliminate toxic sludge, and promotes liver health.
Note: Use decaf; caffeine shouldn’t be given to pets.
Suggested Dosages:
Mix into meals twice daily
Extra-Small Dogs: 100 mg
Small Dogs: 200 mg
Medium Dogs: 300 mg
Large Dogs: 350 mg
Extra-Large Dogs: 400 mg
Bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus) Gemmotherapy 1:200 Dilution
Considering the dangerously high Aluminum levels in the lepto vaccine, Bilberry gemmotherapy is helpful for it’s ability to drain aluminum from the body.
Anthocyanins, contained in Bilberries, chelate heavy metals and have anti-inflammatory effects. They may prevent heavy metal toxicity if given soon enough.
Suggested Dosage: Administer 4 drops for every 15 pounds of body weight twice daily away from food.
Reishi Mushroom (Ganoderma lucidum)
If you notice a tumor on your dog following the lepto vaccine, call on Reishi. Reishi builds immunity and increases natural killer cells, which supports apoptosis (cell death) causing a reduction in tumor size.
Reishi helps regenerate kidney and liver cells, protecting against organ failure.
Suggested Powder Dosage: Give 125 mg for every 15 pounds of body weight twice daily away from food
Tincture Dosage: Give 1/2 ml for every 10 pounds of body weight away from food.
Lepto Homeopathic Nosode
Homeopathic remedies use the theory “like treats like”. A lepto homeopathic nosode uses the lepto toxin and dilutes it significantly, leaving a meniscal toxin amount with it’s energy vibration, in helping stimulate the body fight against it.
Julia Henriques, of Dogs Naturally Magazine, reported, “The Cuban government has successfully used homeopathic nosodes to prevent lepto in its citizens. In 2007 when post-hurricane flooding exposed residents to lepto risk, 2.3 million people were safely immunized at a small fraction of the cost of vaccination”. With a fraction of the cost, and without deadly risk, the homeopathic nosode was successful for prevention in a “high risk" area during a “high risk” natural disaster.
References
Dodds, Dr. Jean. Dr. Jean Dodds of Hemopet: What You Need to Known About Titers & Vaccines for Your Pets. The Spawdcast. 13 April 2020
Henriques, Julia. [UPDATED] Read This Before You Vaccinate For Lepto. 9 Dec 2021. Dogs Naturally Magazine.
https://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/read-this-before-you-vaccinate-for-lepto/
Hoffmann, David. Medical Herbalism. Healing Arts Press, Rochester, 2003.
Hogan, Rita. Canine Herbalist Mentorship, 2018-2023.
Jordan, Patricia, DVM. Leptospirosis In Dogs: Why the Vaccine Doesn’t Work. 13 Dec
Kidd, Randy, DVM, Ph.D. Herbal Dog Care. Storey Publishing, 2000.
Rawlinson, Stan. Is Lepto 4 A Dangerous Vaccination? November 21, 2021. Updated: 29/04/2023. Doglistener. https://www.doglistener.co.uk/is-lepto-4-a-dangerous-vaccine