Ehrlichiosis is a serious tick-transmitted disease in dogs that causes multi-system illness requiring prompt diagnosis and treatment to prevent severe welfare consequences.
Dogs with acute ehrlichiosis are genuinely ill - fever, pain from swollen lymph nodes, and severe weakness are characteristic. Untreated progression to chronic disease causes bone marrow aplasia with life-threatening bleeding tendencies. Tick prevention is the most important welfare intervention. In endemic regions, annual testing allows detection of subclinical infections before chronic disease develops, dramatically improving welfare outcomes.