Lyme Disease in Dogs

 

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TF-Defense is a 100% natural, safe effective herbal and homeopathic remedy that assists in the effective treatment of Lyme Disease and other tick borne illnesses in pets. It will also help to strengthen immune system functioning to help your pet fight against the infection. – click here for more info.

 

 

Lyme Disease in Dogs

Lyme Disease in dogs can be a nasty, quite debilitating condition.  For this reason, it is important to recognize Lyme Disease symptoms so you can act quickly if your dog shows symptoms of Lyme Disease.

Symptoms of Lyme disease in both humans and dogs resemble those of Rheumatoid Arthritis.  Indeed, Lyme Disease as a condition has only identified in the past thirty or so years, as formerly it was probably misdiagnosed as Rheumatoid Arthritis.  In 1975, when there were an unusually high number of cases of Rheumatoid Arthritis diagnosed in children in Lyme, Connecticut, further research was carried out, and a discrete condition was identified, and named “Lyme Disease”.

Lyme Disease in dogs is transmitted as it is in humans, through the bite from a tick that carries certain bacteria.  It is the bacteria that causes Lyme Disease.  Tick bites from ticks not carrying these bacteria cannot transmit Lyme Disease to the dog or person being bitten.  At least three known types of ticks can carry the bacteria that causes Lyme Disease in dogs, but by far the majority of ticks that carry the bacteria are the Deer Tick, also called the Black-Legged Tick.  A Deer Tick bite, therefore, has a relatively high likelihood of transmitting the bacteria that causes Lyme Disease.

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This tick is known as the Deer Tick, because Deer are it’s primary host (ticks being a parasite).  But these ticks will also feed on other types of animals, including both people and dogs.

Canine Lyme Disease is prevalent in the Northeastern states from Maine to Maryland, as well as Minnesota, Wisconsin, Oregon and Northern California.  It is also found in most parts of Australia, particularly bush and country areas, as well as in parts of Europe, China and Japan. This is because in these areas, ticks more commonly carry the bacteria that causes Lyme Disease.

Another tick bite from a tick known as the Paralysis Tick – common in Australia – causes paralysing toxicity and other allergic reactions.

Early symptoms of Lyme Disease in your dog are likely to include what might appear to be a sore foot or leg.  Certainly one of the first symptoms of Lyme Disease will be limping.  Further investigation will then be likely to reveal lymph node swelling in your dog’s affected leg, and your dog is very likely to have an elevated temperature.

If you fail to seek treatment for Lyme Disease very promptly, your dog may suffer paralysis  Even if treated at this stage, your dog may well suffer recurrent, or chronic Lyme Disease.  This may also include permanent joint or nerve damage and damage to the heart muscle.

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Treatment for Lyme Disease in dogs, so that the condition does not progress to chronic Lyme Disease and/or permanent joint or nerve damage, will consist of antibiotics.

There are natural remedies for treating and helping prevent Lyme Disease in dogs, although if your dog has contracted Lyme Disease, it is essential that you see your veterinarian immediately.  Do not delay for a single second.  The natural remedy can be used as an adjunct to the antibiotics, but I would personally never rely solely on a natural remedy in this particular case, because of the very aggressive manner in which Lymes Disease can take hold of your dog.

Preventing tick bites is therefore the obvious key to preventing Lyme Disease.  Removing ticks should be seen as a secondary line of defence only.

Preventing ticks on dogs is similar to, and can be achieved in conjunction with, preventing fleas.

A tick is a parasite.  It is a blood-sucking invertebrate, more closely related to spiders, scorpions and mites, than to insects.

The tick has three stages in its two year life cycle – larvae, nymph and adult.  As a larvae, the tick has six legs, and eight when it develops into the nymph stage.

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It is the nymph tick that is most likely to transmit Lyme Disease, as it embeds itself into your dog’s skin for several days before it is either detected or your dog shows symptoms of Lyme Disease.  The nymph tick is often only the size of a pinhead, whereas the adult tick grows to the size of a watermelon seed.

Dog owners are often surprised that their dog has developed Lyme Disease, as they are careful with tick removal from their dog.  Many dog owners are not aware that nymph ticks are in fact very small and making tick identification very difficult as a result.

TF-Defense
is a 100% natural, safe effective herbal and homeopathic remedy that
assists in the effective treatment of Lyme Disease and other tick borne
illnesses
in pets. It will also help to strengthen immune system functioning to help your pet fight against the infection in the first place. – click here for more info.

For information on how to remove a tick from a dog, click here.

 

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