We are not dogs. At least Not typically. And in medical research we may start with rats (or ill dogs) and watch them for possible application for humans.
Sample excerpts for this interesting article about dog with a canine Babesia:
- Canine babesiosis can cause anemia and lower their ability to clot.
- They showed extreme lethargy and additional symptoms.
- There may have been two Babesia species.
- Treatment with a standard treatment gave clinical improvement and initial decrease in the Babesia amount in the blood.
- However one puppy continued to deteriorate and died.
- Treatment did not result in all Babesia removal but significant numbers dropped.
- Babesia was still found despite one to seven months of treatment. This matches my research results in humans about 25 years ago. Standard human treatment in my unique highly ill practice failed. Perhaps it is useful in a subset of infected patients.
- Atovaquone (a yellow liquid) and azithromycin (Zithromax) for ten days eliminated their Babesia. I am unsure of the equivalent human dose. In my treatment failure type patient we saw little benefit on standard treatment--10 mls a day of atovaquone liquid with 500 mg daily of azithromycin (Zithromax).
Source: Salant H, Nachum-Biala Y, Zivotofsky D, Tzur TE, Baneth G. Babesia negevi infection in dogs and response to treatment. Ticks Tick Borne Dis. 2024 Jan;15(1):102282. doi: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2023.102282. Epub 2023 Nov 21. PMID: 37989015.