Surely you have heard many times about the Lyme’s desease and not only referred to dogs, but also even in people. In fact, some celebrities like Bella Hadid or Avril Lavigne suffer from it. For this reason, we wanted know a little more about this disease, how it attacks our pets and, above all, of how to prevent it.
What is Lyme disease
It is a disease transmitted through a tick bite concrete, known as Ixodes. This tick, which is especially common in areas of the United States such as along the Northeast coast or in the Midwestern states, transmits the disease-causing bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi.
In the case of dogs, it is also called canine borreliosis and if it is treated early it is easy to combat, but if not, complications can occur for the pet.
How is Lyme disease spread?
The bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi causes this disease and contagion occurs when the tick has bitten mice or deer in the fields. When it passes to a dog, it transmits the bacteria, which happens especially in the warmer months.
In fact, ticks are often found in earthy, vegetated habitatswhich includes backyards, parks, forests and any other place where the presence of plants and land exists, without the need for this space to be very large or the volume of vegetation very high.
This means that there are many dogs that may present a positive serology for the disease, but they may not have developed it because, simply, the immune system has been able to eliminate it, but other times the animal gets sick.
How it affects and what are the symptoms of Lyme disease in dogs
After the bite, as we have been able to know, about two days later the bacteria starts to reproduce. We will identify it because a rounded and reddened local lesion with a white center is created.
The symptoms of the disease appear progressively after the bite and range from fever with chills, loss of appetite, tiredness or lack of energy, and discouragement. then it might show up inflammation and deformity of the joints (with a limp and a stiff gait with an arched back), including tenderness from generalized muscle swelling, shortness of breath, and swollen glands.
There could be a chronic phase with inflammation of the heart muscle, fluid retention in the legs and under the skin… even triggering the death of the dog if it is not diagnosed in time.
How to prevent the spread of Lyme disease
The fundamental thing to avoid the disease is the prevention what happens, above all, to respect the external deworming calendar that we will carry out cape with pipettes and repellent collars.
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Even so, on our outings and walks, especially in those hot months that we are talking about (but we could move it to any time of the year), when we fly home we should make sure they haven’t caught any ticks along the way and, if there are, your thing is to go to an expert to remove them as soon as possible.
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In any case, if we notice that the dog has any of the symptoms As we have pointed out, we should go to a veterinarian as soon as possible for a diagnosis and, where appropriate, rapid treatment to prevent the disease from escalating.
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