Scratchings-and-Sniffings

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Lyme Disease in Dogs Posted: 14 Jul 2010 08:37 AM PDT If you live in certain parts of the country you are undoubtedly aware of Lyme disease. Lyme disease affects both people and pets and can have serious health consequences for both. If you live in the Northeast or upper Midwest you live in what is called a Lyme disease endemic area (see map). That means your chances of coming into contact with a tick that carries the bacteria responsible for Lyme disease is pretty darn good. The chances that your dog will encounter an infected tick is even better, considering how they like to play in the woods and run through the brush where ticks hang out. My sister-in-law lives in Massachusetts and has a summer house in New Hampshire. She has had Lyme disease twice and one of her dogs tests positive for Lyme.  Lyme disease is caused by a bug called Borellia burgdorferi and the disease itself is called Borreliosis by us Vets. This bug takes a very interesting route getting to you or your dog. The common deer tick is the parasite that spreads the bug and a couple of mammals play an important role in the deer tick life cycle. The White Footed Mouse plays host to tick larvae and if they are carrying the bug these larvae pick it up and keep it overwinter as they mature. These mature ticks feed on deer, other mammals including people and their pets.  Lyme disease has been around for a long time but really became a problem in the latter third of the last century. One big reason for this is reforestation and a concomitant rise in deer populations in the endemic areas. Even urban areas have seen deer populations explode and the threat of Lyme disease is no longer simply a rural problem. Dogs infected with Lyme disease may incubate the bug for weeks after a bite and not show any clinical signs for quite some time. Those signs include fever, lack of appetite, lethargy, swollen lymph nodes and swollen, inflamed joints resulting in a shifting lameness. Some dogs develop a serious form of kidney disease that can be life threatening. Cats, by the way, are rarely affected. Treatment is pretty straightforward and involves the use of antibiotics and pain relievers for joint pain if present. The key to success is duration of therapy and antibiotics should be given for at least two weeks and more commonly a full month. The better bet is prevention. Both vaccination and tick control are the key features of prevention. While vaccination has been somewhat controversial in the past we now have newer more effective vaccines and if you live in an endemic area you should discuss vaccination with your Veterinarian. Tick control has also gotten easier and more effective with the advent of broad spectrum, once a month topical preventatives. These products are generally more effective than tick collars with one exception. The Preventic collar works quite well. If I lived in Wisconsin or Vermont or New York I'd do both. I'd vaccinate and use a topical preventive. You should also check your dog after an outing in tick country. It takes 48 hours for a tick to attach, feed and spread the disease. If you can remove them in this window, you should. Since I live in New Mexico Miles and I are probably safe from Lyme disease. We do travel however and if we ever go visit the in laws in the Northeast I'd invest in a Preventic collar, at least. If you plan travels in endemic areas you should consider this too.

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