Pet First Aid: Tick-Borne Diseases

by Aimee Amodio | More from this Blogger

08 Sep 2007 11:07 AM

Ticks are dangerous for pets and people. A tick's saliva can transmit microscopic organisms into the person or pet getting bitten. Some of the same diseases that are dangerous to humans are dangerous to pets, and vice versa.

The good news is that ticks don't generally hop from a person to an animal or from a pet to an owner. Once the tick is feeding, it will usually stay with the host. And it can take up to twelve hours or more for a feeding tick to transmit one of the following diseases to a pet.

• Babesiosis causes severe anemia. Left untreated, the liver, kidneys, and spleen can all be damaged. The first symptom is one you might not notice -- a high fever (as high as 107 degrees Fahrenheit). Your pet's urine will appear very dark due to blood leakage. Babesiosis can lead to neurological symptoms like tooth grinding or "drunken" behavior. Dogs can die within four days of contracting the disease if left untreated.
• Ehrlichiosis suppresses the immune system. Symptoms include bloody nose and a high fever.
• Lyme disease is the tick-borne disease that you've probably heard of. This disease is transmitted after twelve to twenty-four hours of feeding. You may see a pet with Lyme disease limp, act depressed, and run a fever. Your pet may also develop a bull's eye rash (like many humans do) but fur will make this hard to see.
• Rocky Mountain spotted fever comes with stiffness, labored breathing, vomiting, diarrhea, leg swelling, and facial swelling. Left untreated, your pet may bleed from the nose and have blood in urine and feces.
• Tick paralysis is thought to be caused by a neurotoxin in the tick's saliva. Your pet can become paralyzed over a 48 or 72 hour period. Removing all the ticks from the pet's body usually takes care of the paralysis.

Most tick-borne diseases can be treated with some form of antibiotics. If you suspect that your pet has contracted a tick-borne disease, contact your veterinarian as soon as possible.

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Aimee is a fiction writer... dog lover... music lover...

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