What Is Blastomycosis In A Dog And Cat?

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What Is Blastomycosis In A Dog?
Questions and answers about Blastomycosis in dogs and cats

Blastomycosis, sometimes referred to as "Blasto", is an elusive fungal organism that as part of its life cycle has the interesting nature to exist as a single-celled yeast organism. The organism grows in certain types of soil as a fungus (or lays dormant as a spore waiting for better conditions). If soil, humidity, and temperatures are just right the spores grow as a fungus and generates tens of thousands of very tiny spores. If inhaled by a person or animal from disturbed soil the spores evolve into replicating yeast organisms in the tissues! Blastomyces dermatitidis can infect humans, dogs, occasionally cats and some other warm blooded animals

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Question:
     I just found out my dog "Harmon" has blastomycosis! My veterinarian says we live in an endemic area for this disease and she looked for the organisms under the microscope and showed me what they look like.
     The vet says since we got the dog in before the infection has advanced too far we stand a good chance of curing it but there never can be 100% assurance that he will recover.
     What is blasto, anyways? How come my dog got it?

Human blastomycosis...
People almost never contract blastomycosis from a dog or cat... but under unique conditions it could happen.

Answer: blastomycosis what is... treatment... diagnosis
You and your dog are lucky that the doctor is familiar with blastomycosis. Endemic means above average numbers of the disease occur in your area. Blasto is a

blastomycosis may have caused this eye damage

microscopic yeast-like single celled organism during the infection and a fungal organism in the environment. Your dog probably got blasto by inhaling spores from dried soil that contained the fungal stage of the organism.
     In dogs the disease is considered very dangerous and often will be fatal if a diagnosis is delayed or if the patient is not treated with specific anti-fungal medication. Commonly used antibiotics for bacterial infections will not work against the infective yeast phase of blastomycosis.
Diagnosis: A positive diagnosis is made by seeing the organisms through the microscope in a sample of tissue or fluid. Sending a serum sample to a lab for a blasto titer may be misleading. And tissue specimens for a culture of the fungus may take weeks to acquire.
Treatment: Some very sick dogs require hospitalization, fluid therapy, and intravenous anti-fungal medications. Critical care in the hospital for over a week may be needed. Oral medications such as ketoconazole, itraconazole and fluconazole are often used in addition to antibiotics to assist in controlling bacterial opportunists.
Prevention:
1.) Avoidance of close contact with disturbed soil near waterways.
2.) Awareness of the usual signs especially if you live in a geographic area where blastomycosis cases have been reported.
3.) Early examination and proactive pursuit of a diagnosis if your dog is sick.

Doctor's Notes
     Dogs that have recovered from a blastomycosis infection can become infected again. However, we are not certain that the second infection is truly due to a new exposure!
     It is possible that even after treatment has stopped and a recovery is presumed, some blasto organisms can remain in the dog's body. Over time they can reproduce and cause illness.
     Most dogs that begin a second set of treatment respond very well and can live a full life.

Get a diagnosis!
   If your dog or cat is sick your veterinarian will need specific data to establishing a correct diagnosis. Without that data all your vet can do is make a judgment call such as "it could be..." or "it probably is ..." so for you to get a correct diagnosis your veterinarian will need your permission to do certain tests.

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This young Golden Retriever did not survive the generalized systemic infection from blastomycosis.	This is a close-up view of a skin lesion in a small dog that is just starting to become sick with blastomycosis	Dark stained capsules of the yeast form of blasto are easily seen in this slide with material from the skin lesion on the left.	This impression smear stained with New Methylene Blue shows how blasto organisms reproduce by budding.
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The stain is applied to the dried sample material thinly smeared on the glass slide.	This chest radiograph (x-ray) shows the patchy densities in the lungs from blastomycosis invasion. Some cases appear as a snowstorm pattern of tiny densities.	The slide is carefully viewed for evidence of the blasto organisms. Often, diligent inspection will present even a single organism... BINGO! You have the diagnosis!	Cats such as this poor kitty only rarely contract blastomycosis. It is more likely in immune suppressed animals.

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Related Question:
My dog was just euthanized because of blastomycosis; it got into his lungs and spread into his eyes and skin. We thought he had cancer at first but finally the diagnosis of blasto was made and he was doing so poorly, and was blind, we elected to end his suffering.
Is there any way to prevent blastomycosis or is there a vaccine against it? I don't want my other dog to ever get it.

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Answer: blastomycosis what is... diagnose... treatment
   There is no vaccine against blastomycosis, partly because being a yeast organism when infective (and a fungus organism in the environment) it is very difficult to create a vaccine against it.   In your dog's case if you know where he likely was exposed, such as a stream side, topsoil for gardening, digging up a beaver lodge or dam... anywhere there may be richly organic, moist soil could harbor pockets of Blastomyces organisms.
     Dogs that like to dig holes hunting for gophers or chipmunks and dogs that dig themselves a dirt bed to lay in may have greater exposure to inhaling blasto spores associated with the soil. Blastomycosis does not grow "in the water" of a pond, lake or stream but may grow in the shoreline soil and has been found in the dried mud of beaver lodges and dams. Below are a few points to remember about blasto...

Do not allow your dog to dig holes

Have an exam done if any cough, skin sore, or weight loss is noted

Swimming is OK but try to avoid boggy or muddy shorelines

Fever of 104 to 105 are common during a blastomycosis infection