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My dog has leishmaniasis. Does it need treatment? What are the risks?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | French Bulldog | Female | spayed | 6 lbs

Dear Doctor, I have a French bulldog . She had a nodule like lesion that was excised and pathologist reported as leishmaniasis. Does her disease need treatment? Can it be transformed to the visceral type? If not treated,may it have any serious consequences in future or reduce her life expectancy? Her veterinarian plans to treat her by meglumin and allopurinol but I think he is not sure about it. Please let me know your recommendations as I am so worried. Best regards, Dr.A.Hassanzadeh

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1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Massimo Orioles, DVM, Cert AVP, MRCVS

Veterinarian

Published on March 22nd, 2018

Most common Leishmania infection in dogs rarely is the visceral form, so the possibility that is going to be like that or develop the visceral form is very low. If not treated the leishmania infection can have serious consequences and lead to death. Treatment is necessary, but to be able to comment that I would need more precise clinical informations. For the moment please follow this link to find more detailed informations about therapy: http://www.leishvet.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/LeishVet-2edition.pdf Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further.

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