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#1
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Question about Lyme disease
Greetings everyone:
My coworker found a small tick on her Viszla, with the telltale bullseye red circle, so of course she is now worried about Lyme disease. She called her vet, who said that a blood test so soon would show nothing, and that the bullseye didn't mean that he would necessarily get Lyme disease, and that if he did, it might not show up for 6 months, and she should just watch him for symptoms until that time. I advised her to get a second opinion, as it seems to me that the blood work might show the illness before the dog becomes symptomatic, and why wait for him to get sick before treatment? What do you all think? She's thinking maybe a monthly blood test to see if the Lyme shows up before the dog gets sick -- would that be wise, or pointless? Do dogs have to appear ill before receiving treatment for this illness? Any advice/experience would be much appreciated. Thanks. -- Catherine & Zoe, Queenie, & Max, 3 black dogs of varying sizes & Rosalie the calico cat www.ourladyofperfection.blogspot.com |
#2
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Question about Lyme disease
"ceb" wrote in message
... My coworker found a small tick on her Viszla, with the telltale bullseye red circle, .......if a tick attaches they all get a red irritated circle around them. This is not a bullseye, it's a reaction to the stuff the tick shoots into the tissue to dissolve it. I don't even know if dog's get that human bullseye reaction. so of course she is now worried about Lyme disease. She called her vet, who said that a blood test so soon would show nothing, and that the bullseye didn't mean that he would necessarily get Lyme disease, and that if he did, it might not show up for 6 months, and she should just watch him for symptoms until that time. ..........good advice. The Lyme disease test is for antibodies to the disease itself, so it there hasn't been enough time for the body to mount a defense, then there's nothing for the test to measure. If it would make her feel better, she could get a test now - SNAP 4 I think - which would tell her if her dog had a pre-existing titer for Lyme disease, which might give her a more complete picture later. There's lots of dogs with titers for Lyme disease, which means they've been exposed, but never got the disease. and why wait for him to get sick before treatment? .........why would you treat a dog that's not sick? What do you all think? She's thinking maybe a monthly blood test ..........overkill. Test now for baseline, test again in 6 months. Meanwhile read up on symptoms. If the dog displays any of these, test for it.. Reading: http://blackgsd.googlepages.com/home buglady take out the dog before replying |
#3
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Question about Lyme disease
"buglady" wrote in news:13j49l3dktnoj49
@corp.supernews.com: Reading: http://blackgsd.googlepages.com/home Thanks so much for your response. I forwarded it to my coworker. -- Catherine & Zoe, Queenie, & Max, 3 black dogs of varying sizes & Rosalie the calico cat www.ourladyofperfection.blogspot.com |
#4
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Question about Lyme disease
"buglady" wrote in message: I don't even know if dog's get that human bullseye reaction. They don't, according to my vet. Meanwhile read up on symptoms. If the dog displays any of these, test for it.. Part of that is also not making light of seemingly small stuff. As I have mentioned elsewhere, Khan's Lyme disease only manifested itself in his reluctance to go down (slower, and just a teensy bit whiny). Suja |
#5
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Question about Lyme disease
"Suja" wrote in
: Part of that is also not making light of seemingly small stuff. As I have mentioned elsewhere, Khan's Lyme disease only manifested itself in his reluctance to go down (slower, and just a teensy bit whiny). Thanks, Suja. I'm sure she'll be very vigilant (and I forwarded your post to her too). -- Catherine & Zoe, Queenie, & Max, 3 black dogs of varying sizes & Rosalie the calico cat www.ourladyofperfection.blogspot.com |
#6
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Question about Lyme disease
"Suja" wrote in message ... Part of that is also not making light of seemingly small stuff. As I have mentioned elsewhere, Khan's Lyme disease only manifested itself in his reluctance to go down (slower, and just a teensy bit whiny). .......yeah, any noticeable change. Just being *off* for any reason. buglady take out the dog before replying |
#7
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Question about Lyme disease
"ceb" wrote in message: Thanks, Suja. I'm sure she'll be very vigilant (and I forwarded your post to her too). Just so she doesn't get paranoid. Deer tick are small. Very, very small. Adult tick is the size of a pin head. If she found something bigger, chances are it's a dog tick and not a carrier of Lyme. Also, they have to feed for about 24 hours to infect, so if the critter she found was not at all engorged, it is a pretty safe bet it hadn't been on there for long. Next time, have her save the tick (I plop mine into a small container of rubbing alcohol). ID'ing it (and possibly testing it) can be helpful, in case the dog ever shows strange symptoms of tick borne diseases. Suja |
#8
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Question about Lyme disease
Suja wrote:
"ceb" wrote in message: Thanks, Suja. I'm sure she'll be very vigilant (and I forwarded your post to her too). Just so she doesn't get paranoid. Deer tick are small. Very, very small. Adult tick is the size of a pin head. If she found something bigger, chances are it's a dog tick and not a carrier of Lyme. SNIP Suja Hi there! When our springer had a deer tick on her, it was significantly bigger than a pin head, as it had been on her for about 10 days. I didn't know my hubby had taken her to Tick Haven (AKA his brother in law's land) 10 days previous, and he didn't know I hadn't used the Frontline on schedule. Her tick looked like a sunflower seed kernel stuck in her skin... vet confirmed an engorged deer tick. http://www.lyme.org/gallery/ticks.html There are numerous websites like this, but this is the one that helped me identify the big sunflower seed sticking out of her back. ; ) The fact that one could see little black legs was kind of a clue too Our vet did the SNAP test, and we went back about a month later... though I can't recall if it was for a repeat lyme test or what. We ended up getting her the lyme disease vaccines because she is a hunting dog often out in the grass. That and her mom is sometimes negligent about using the Frontline on time. good luck to your friend's dog! Shel |
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