1999 Volume 52 Issue 12 Pages 780-783
The following percentages of house dogs in 6 regions of Japan had sera reacting positively to the leptospira antibody: Hokkaido 25.8%, Shizuoka Prefecture 40.0%, Toyama Prefecture 8.9%, Hyogo Prefecture 10.0%, Okayama Prefecture 15.0%, and Okinawa Prefecture 29.0%. Antibodies to 6 serovars usually found in Japan (L. autumnalis, L. hebdomadis, L. australis, L. icterohaemorrhagiae, L. canicola, and L. pyrogenes) were detected in these districts, whereas antibodies against 2 serovars with high pathogenicity to farm animals elsewhere but unconfirmed in Japan (L. Pomona and L. hardjo) were not detected. All antibody-positive dogs were clinically normal and free of clinical signs or suggestions of leptospirosis. Their serum glucose, BUN, GOT, GPT, alkaline phosphatase, total cholesterol, and total bilirubin were within normal ranges.
