But experts already believe ehrlichiosis is unlikely to devastate dingoes in the same way.

The disease is spread by ticks which are more at home in urban areas than the bush.

This tick has adapted to living and reproducing in and around homes.

Dingoes in the wild are in small groups and on the move which reduces the chances of the brown dog tick finding and feeding on them.

Wild dogs are calculated to cost $89.3 million per year in lost agricultural activity.

As many as six out of every 10 dogs in some remote communities in the Territory have succumbed to the disease which only landed in Australia a year ago.

There have been hundreds of cases of ehrlichiosis already in Darwin as well.

There have been isolated cases right around Australia but is now declared endemic in the NT.

NT government ehrlichiosis management coordinator Dr Megan Pickering said the effects of the disease had been dramatic and severe, particularly among the free-ranging dog populations in Indigenous communities.

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From a total of 1194 blood samples analysed by the Berrimah Veterinary Laboratory, 387 were positive for the disease.

Infected dogs do not directly transmit the disease to other dogs.

Dr Pickering said veterinarians, animal management workers and dog owners were reporting widespread outbreaks of the disease in epidemic form in the Northern Territory.

She said the number of confirmed laboratory tests did not reflect the situation on the ground.

"Anecdotally, thousands of dogs have acquired the infection, with significant numbers of deaths," she said.

"The impact of this disease on wild dog populations is currently unknown but dingoes that move into areas of human habitation to feed and/or breed are likely to be as highly susceptible to infection as domestic dogs."

Dingoes are the same species, or very closely related to domestic dogs.

There has already been two cases reported of pet dingoes being infected with ehrlichiosis.

"Initially the disease occurred in its acute form, where dogs present with fever and lethargy, are often off food, and may be lame, lose weight, have unusual bleeding and eye disease," Dr Pickering said.

"More recently, reports suggest an increasing number of presentations of the disease in its chronic form.

"This form of the disease occurs months to years following an infectious tick bite, and the clinical signs are extremely severe and often fatal.

"The chronic form of the disease is associated with immune system failure, a slow wasting death, and is of significant concern with respect to animal welfare."

Dr Pickering said dogs with clinical signs of ehrlichiosis need treatment with antibiotics prescribed by a registered veterinarian.

She said euthanasia was recommended for dogs with chronic, progressive ehrlichiosis if the animal did not respond to antibiotic treatment.

The Territory has instigated a management plan with the disease now considered endemic and strategies to manage brown dog ticks to limit the spread of disease.

Dr Pickering said dogs should be treated with a tick repellent product and also an insecticide-impregnated collar or "spot on" product that disperses through the coat.

Professional pest controller and NT Cattleman's Association representative on the National Wild Dog Action Plan Coordination Committee, Adam Bowen, said the full impact of ehrlichiosis in the dingo population was still unknown.

Mr Bowen said domestic dog populations in NT indigenous communities had been the hardest hit with losses up of up 60 per cent.

He said healthy, middle aged wild dogs trapped over the past few years had a zero or relatively low tick burden.

"Older and young wild dogs in poor condition and with compromised immune systems could fall victim to the ticks," Mr Bowen said.

"The ticks can be found on their ears, neck, front legs and underneath their flanks where they can't groom themselves."

Results from a national surveillance program back in March confirmed the disease was established in the far north of South Australia in the APY Lands and has since been confirmed in Victoria in June.

There have been cases in NSW and Queensland, all from dogs brought back from the Territory.

Murdoch University research associate Dr Narelle Dybing said sampling had resulted in no trace of the tick borne disease in Western Australian wild dog populations.

"Since 2017-2021, 30 wild dogs have been collected from 18 locations throughout the Gascoyne, Murchison and Nullabor regions and analysed for ecto- and endoparasites," Dr Dybing said.

"From these 30 dogs, no ticks (including the brown dog tick responsible for transmitting canine Ehrlichiosis) were found."

The many travellers enjoying the removal of pandemic road blocks in Territory have been warned need to be vigilant about tick-infested environments, including places like fuel stations and caravan parks.

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