Could it have been Lyme dis-ease?
Lyme Disease is a bacterial disease affecting both humans and animals
OR...
Canine Leptospirosis:
Leptospirosis, a contagious disease affecting both animals and humans and spread by infection with a bacterial pathogen called Leptospira
The Leptospira Organism. Leptospires are known as "aquatic spirochetes": they thrive in water and appear long and helical with a characteristic hook on one or both ends.
Modes of Disease Transmission. Leptospira thrive in spring and autumn when wet soil conditions and moderate temperatures support their otherwise poor environmental survivability. Infection by contact with infected urine or ingestion of urine-contaminated water is the most common means of transmission of the disease.
Symptoms of disease. During the first 4-12 days following infection with Leptospira, may experience sudden symptoms of fever (103-105oF), depression, vomiting, loss of appetite, conjunctivitis, and generalized pain. Within 2 days of the onset of these primary symptoms, body temperature may drop suddenly and there may be a noticeable increase in thirst. In advanced cases of infection, profound depression, difficulty breathing, muscular tremors, bloody vomitus and feces are often observed as the infection progresses to include the liver, gastrointestinal system and other organs. Course and severity of the disease is often dependent upon the serovar responsible for the infection.
http://www.labbies.com/lepto.htm