[Ma and Pa Snip]

Chances are the dog probably caught it from a watercourse, river or pond that has rats using it. Children have been known to catch it from swimming in rivers.

Weil's is far from pleasant but I wouldn't let what you have read lead you to unduly panic . Whilst forewarned is forearmed its not exactly something that has epidemic status.

Good washing of food is no doubt second nature to you anyway, if you know you have a rat problem then disinfecting tools  or other things you handle would assist.

If you are really worried there are disinfectants available that have been tested and approved as being effective against Leptospirosis, if your local gardening outlet does not have one then a visit to a good pet superstore will find at least one brand on the shelf.

If you are worried about a particular area, such as your compost heap, wear disposable gloves whilst working on it.

I reckon more people get run over than catch things from rats. Ok Ok I agree, its highly unlikely they will get run over whilst shovelling compost on their allotment  

[lincolnlad]

Its not just compost the rats live in i have rats in my manure heap where its warm i allways wash the veg before we eat it.they are loads of rats on the site i am on but we have a family of stoats so they keep the rats down at the moment.cheers lincolnlad.    

[8doubles]

I think the most important thing is to keep the rat numbers as low as possible. With most urban gardens having a bird table it is a certainty that they will turn up sooner or later and rural gardens always get an influx after crops have been harvested and natural foodstuff becomes scarce in winter.
Pest control is i`m afraid  a constant thing and not a one off cure, the less rats there are the less chance there is of contracting diseases .