262
Bartonellosis in Dogs
While studying the association of Bartonella with induced anaemia in
dogs, Rhoads and Miller [1935] came to the conclusion that when splenecto-
mized dogs were kept on a diet which produces black tongue, they developed
severe anaemia associated with the presence of small bodies in or on the ery-
throcytes, and the bodies were morphologically similar to B. muris and B.
canis. The addition of lean beef to the diet, recognized as a prophylactic
measure against black tongue, improved the conditions and caused the dis-
appearance of Bartonella from the blood. Bartonella was also found to
produce similar conditions when injected into splenectomized dogs, kept on a
normal or black tongue producing diet. Bartonella bodies appeared in the
blood and severe anaemia soon followed. But similar injections into non-
splenectomized dogs fed in the same way resulted in anaemia only. It is
further stated that ' injections into normal animals fed on normal diet caused
not even anaemia '. [This finding is important because our experience at
this Institute with B. canis is quite the contrary.]
McNaught, Woods and Scott [1935] demonstrated the presence of B.
canis in the erythrocytes of non-splenectomized dogs kept on a vitamin-
adequate basal diet. The Bartonella infection was also transmitted to
splenectomized dogs by intravenous injection of whole blood. One injection of
neoarsphenamine equivalent to 15 mg. per kiloweight was found sufficient for
sterilizing the infected tissues. They hypothesised that possibly the spleen
liberated certain substances in the blood stream, which had an inhibitory effect
upon the latent Bartonella infection. In the course of their plasmapherisis
experiment, which involved many bleedings, this protective substance
associated with the plasma protein was reduced, while in the inoculated
splenectomized dog it was completely lacking.
While examining the haematology of splenectomized dogs and making
a study of the effect of splenectomy on the gastric secretion, Goyanes [1936]
came across a case of Bartonella infection which ended fatally. Goyanes
believes that the ring-like phase of this parasite described by Regendanz
and Reichenow [1932] has an earlier stage in which the filamentous and
granular forms appeared to possess zones similar to undulating membrane. He
further states that these extensions formed the ' violin-bow ' described by
Kikuth (loc. cit.) and the coccoid-like forms were produced by the fragmenta-
tion of filaments.
Wills and Mehta [1930] produced severe anaemia in normal rats by
feeding them on a diet deficient in vitamins A and C and also demonstrated
Bartonella muris in their erythrocytes in great numbers.
Yakimoff and Rastegaieff [1931] made attempts to demonstrate Barto-
nella in the dogs of Leningrad, and in splenectomized dogs they came across
certain bodies, which they interpreted as Jolly-Howell bodies, although,
according to their own estimate, they resembled Bartonella.
Regendanz and Reichenow [1932] have studied the morphology of B. canis
Kikuth, encountered in or on the red blood corpuscles of splenectomized dogs.
Different phases in the development of the parasite have been described in
detail by these authors. They however failed to confirm Kikuth's observa-
tions in respect of the filtrable nature of this parasite.
Weiss and Muzzo [1936] as quoted by Weinman and Pinkerton [1937]
came across Bartonella canis in splenectomized dogs of Peru.