Anaplasmosis in Dogs

[DiamondJubilee]

I had my girl in for her pre op spay/gastropexy bloodwork yesterday, and figured I would do her fecal, rabies booster, titre for her DAPP, a wellness blood work (to keep as a baseline for myself), and 4DX blood work as well to check for heartworm/lyme.

The results came back from the lab (the vet emailed me this morning when shes at home and off duty even!) and she said she was negative for heart worm, lyme and ehrilchia. But she is positive for anaplasmosis. I of course am going to call her on Monday to get some more details, but I’m not sure if I should post pone her surgery, do another CBC count and go from there or maybe I worry too much? She didn’t seem too concerned in her email as her CBC’s were fairly normal. See below for what she wrote:
“Anaplasmosis could cause changes in the levels of blood cells including the red blood cells and platelets. Given that she has antibodies to these infections with no signs of illness, I expected her blood cell levels to be fine. Her CBC (complete blood count) indeed shows that her blood cells are in normal ranges except for a type of white blood cell called the lymphocytes, which are slightly elevated. I assume that this is due to the chronic stimulation of the immune system from the Anaplasma infection.
The normal CBC results mean that we do not need to treat her right now, and we should be fine to proceed with surgery. That being said, we need to be clear that a general anesthesia will suppress her immune system, and if the Anaplasma has not been cleared by her immune system, it could cause a flare after the surgery. If she started to show signs of Anaplasma post surgery (lethargy, odd bruising, etc.), she would need to have a CBC repeated. It would also not be wrong to repeat a CBC two weeks after surgery just to be sure that everything is okay.
I also have her blood chemistry panel, and this was normal. This shows normal function of her kidneys, liver, thyroid and pancreas along with normal levels of electrolytes and blood proteins.
Her blood titers for distemper and parvo virus are still pending. I expect that we will have these by Wednesday”.

I did ask for her bloodwork so I can keep it in my files as well. I posted this in a Swissy FB group as well as they know the breed so well, and most are saying to wait for surgery and get a second opinion. To clear up the anaplasmosis first, and then do the surgery once her blood is clear. But the vet is saying that she doesn’t need to be treated and her CBC mostly came back normal so she’s not too worried about surgery. Now I’m not sure, but as I said, I will call to clarify.

Any suggestions or feedback would be welcome! Thanks in advance.

[S1969]

My dog has been sick with anaplasmosis and you would know. If they are symptomatic it comes on acutely - fever, lethargy, swollen joints. It resolved quickly with antibiotics, but there was no doubt that the dog was actively sick.

My youngest dog recently came back with a positive 4DX for Lyme and not symptomatic so they are also not treating.

Once upon a time vets in my area would treat for Lyme without symptoms, but not anymore. They are concerned with antibiotic resistance so only treat symptoms.

I would trust that the clean bloodwork means that your dog was exposed, but since not symptomatic there is no need to treat.

[DiamondJubilee]

Thank you for your reply.

What would you think about surgery? Hold off until she was negative for anaplasmosis, or go ahead with the surgery in 1.5 weeks time? (speaking of options with the vet on Monday as I’m not sure if they can wait for a few weeks and re schedule me in or not). She is not on anything for it, so I don’t know how long it would take for clear bloodwork. I could hold off I suppose if I have to for surgery, as I do want her as healthy as possible of course, that is my main worry.
There is a 1 year old unfixed male lab now that our neighbour just got a few weeks ago. I like to think I’m as responsible as I can be, but we are on a 70 acre farm and she is out when I am, and not tied up. Of course I was much more carful when she was in heat the last time as we have coyotes etc, but now with the dog a few hundred feet from our property, I do worry even more about holding off on surgery. We also travel to horse shows with her, so I have a worry there as well.

[S1969]

Oh I’d go ahead with the surgery. She may test positive for months.

[DiamondJubilee]

Thank you. I didn’t know they could test positive for so long!

I was just getting a bit worried as so many people on the Swissy site not to do it (though most don’t fix their dogs on there, not that I have a problem with it, they just see it better for the dog that way and encourage others to do the same) and to have her bloodwork cleared before I even think of getting her an elective surgery.

I’m for sure going to call my vet, and the one performing her actual surgery has a Swissy, and just neutered/pexi him last week, so thats a huge bonus for me (the breed is so rare around here so its nice to know of a vet that owns one and knows the breed history/issues). The vet is in on Monday and I’ll call her and the surgeon only works on Wednesdays so I can call and speak with her as well (which the vet suggested I do). So I will have 2 other opinions as well before I make my decision.

Thanks again for your insight! It does make me feel a bit better for sure.

[S1969]

As a purebred dog owner, I can say that I still trust my vet with medical advice far more than the longtime breeders, no matter how experienced they may be at selecting and breeding. I’ve heard some very far fetched explanations for genetic things from non-vet people. Many of the people in my breed swear by non-sedated OFA X-rays as being better and safer for the dog, and they will drive 6 hours to have multiple X-rays done by a vet that is not their own. Knowing, that if necessary, they will sedate. I’d much prefer my vet, who I know, to use my dogs history and quickly sedate and reverse for one good X-ray.

If you ask the breeders, every one of them has heard of some dog owned 30 years ago by some distant acquaintance that was sedated and supposedly died. I’ll take my chances.

[DiamondJubilee]

I do agree with you there about listening and trusting my vet. I also do listen and will listen to what she has to say. In her email, she did say she was comfortable with her CBC for surgery, but she also wanted to let me know the potential risks, which I appreciate. I will speak with her more in person to get the full info and listen to what her advice is.

Thanks again

[DiamondJubilee]

I did get her actual blood results back and they look really good to me. Her lymphocytes is just out of range (1-5 and she was a 5.6) and everything else was normal (except testing positive for anaplasmosis). I’m waiting on the vet to call me back to discuss, but the actual paperwork makes me feel better. My girl is also still acting totally normal, no issues there knock on wood