Hemobartonella felis infection with atypical hematological abnormalities

Two cases of clinical feline hemobartonellosis with dramatic hematological changes are reported. One cat succumbed to an acute, severe hemolytic anemia accompanied by markedly increased numbers of nucleated erythrocytes. The second cat presented with a remarkably elevated leukocyte count and responded well to treatment with tetracycline. In both instances, the initial hematological data was very unusual for feline hemobartonellosis. These cases further exemplify the greatly variable and sometimes misleading hematological changes seen with Hemobartonella felis infection.