[Leptospirosis in dogs in Slovakia].

Out of 571 serologically investigated dogs from Bratislava and all regions of Slovakia and Moravia, 26.1% presented antibodies reacting with leptospiral antigens. The lowing seropositivity in dogs from Bratislava was found in lap dogs--11.1%, the highest one in farm dogs--35.3% (Tab. I). The seropositivity of police dogs from different regions of Slovakia and Moravia varied from 24.0% to 47.6% (Tab. II). The age of dogs progressing, their seropositivity rose from 3.1% in animals younger than one year to 33.3% in those aged seven years and in older ones (Tab. III). The predominant serovars causing infections of dogs were L. grippotyphosa (58.9% of infections) and serovars of both Sejroe (21.0%) and Icterohaemorrhagiae groups (15.3%). The serovars bratislava/jalna, pomond/mozdok and tarassovi were only rarely involved in these infections, canicola and arborea only exceptionally (Tab. IV). At present, in the Czechoslovak conditions the dogs do not play a significant role as reservoirs of human leptospirosis, and the predominant serovars may only cause irregular and short-time lasting leptospiruria. This is why the reasonableness of actual vaccination of dogs, possibly with the exception of the vaccination against Weil's disease, is doubtful. Dog is a good indicator of the distribution of different leptospiral serovars in its environment. It seems reasonable to practice occasionally serological investigations of these animals in order to detect possible changes in infecting leptospiral serovars. Consequently, adequate epizootological measures could be taken (e. g. modification of the composition of a leptospiral vaccine for dogs).