27 Nov Lyme Disease in Dogs; Causes, Symptoms and Treatment

Borrelia bacteria cause Lyme disease in dogs. These bacteria are transmitted to dogs by the Ixodes tick, the black-legged or the deer tick. Severe symptoms can include joint pain, lameness, fever, and more. Timely diagnosis and treatment of this disease are necessary. Untreated or severe forms of Lyme can cause serious problems in your dog’s kidneys. Most people have heard of the dangers of Lyme disease, but few people realize that it can also affect dogs. Unlike humans, many dogs exposed to Lyme disease never develop symptoms. Most of the time, the symptoms are mild and easily treatable. However, some dogs with Lyme disease can become very ill. Timely treating a dog for Lyme disease is the best course of action. In this article, we will learn more about how dogs get Lyme, its symptoms, and the treatment and prevention of this parasitic disease.

What is Lyme disease?

Borrelia bacteria cause Lyme disease. Ticks transmit the bacterium to dogs (or humans), but the condition isn’t contagious between species. It means humans can’t get Lyme from dogs or dogs from them. The Ixodes tick transmits most Lyme disease infections. Infection is most likely to occur in spring and summer. But illness can occur all year round. During the winter, ticks survive by biting and attaching to mammals such as mice, squirrels, and deer. When a tick leaves one of these animals, it can easily be transferred to your dog. Since ticks transmit the disease, the most significant risk is in and near forested areas.

Causes of Lyme disease in dogs

Just like humans, dogs get Lyme disease from the bite of an infected Ixodes tick. However, disease transmission doesn’t occur immediately when a tick bites. It takes 24-48 hours for the tick to transmit the disease to the dog. When Borrelia bacteria enter a dog’s body, it changes its surface molecules to hide from the body’s immune system. So many dogs don’t get sick immediately but may develop symptoms long after a tick bite. Ticks can transmit disease even in the early stages of life. Young mites, known as nymphs (often called seed mites), look like tiny black dots. Their legs are so small that you may not see them at first. Adult ticks have a black front half of the body and a wider brown back. If the tick is already attached to your dog, you may not be able to see the head. Retriever dogs may be slightly more susceptible to severe Lyme disease. Studies conducted in Europe have shown that Bernese Mountain Dogs may also be at risk of developing this powerful form.

Symptoms of Lyme disease in dogs

Many dogs exposed to Lyme disease never show symptoms. But for infected dogs, symptoms may develop days to weeks after exposure to the tick and range from very mild to severe. Joint pain is often the first symptom of Lyme disease in dogs, involving one or more joints. Sometimes, pain in multiple joints can be detected as stiffness or slowness to rise and fall. Most dogs that develop symptoms of Lyme disease show one or more of the following symptoms:

• Fever
• lameness
• Swollen lymph nodes
• Swelling and joint pain
• lethargy (decreased energy)

Rarely do dogs develop kidney disease associated with Lyme infection. Symptoms of this form of Lyme disease, called Lyme nephritis, may range from mild to severe.

Similar symptoms of acute or chronic kidney disease include the following:

• Vomit
• Oedema (fluids under the skin)
• Fluid in the chest or abdomen
• anorexia

Diagnosis

Diagnosis of Lyme disease in dogs begins with a physical examination. The vet will suggest a blood and urine test in the next step. Several symptoms and causes, including signs of inflammation and kidney damage, are common in acute and chronic Lyme disease that your vet will look for. Since joint pain is a common symptom of Lyme disease, your vet may use x-rays to look for other causes of joint pain in your dog. Your veterinarian will perform a particular blood test for Lyme disease antibodies. Antibodies are part of the body’s immune system that recognize the specific cause of the disease, Like Borrelia bacteria that cause Lyme disease. Although testing helps rule out Lyme disease, it can’t confirm whether or not your dog’s symptoms are the result of a Lyme disease infection.

Treatments

Most veterinarians recommend oral antibiotics for symptomatic dogs for four weeks after exposure to the tick. The vet may also recommend painkillers or steroids depending on the dog’s symptoms. Most dogs will recover within a month with proper treatment, and Lyme disease won’t affect their overall health or life expectancy. However, long-term infection with Borrelia can damage a dog’s kidneys and develop into Lyme nephritis. So, timely diagnosis and treatment of Lyme disease are essential. 

Kidney damage is irreversible and progressive, although various medications and other treatments can improve your dog’s health. These treatments include changing the dog’s prescribed food and adding one or more oral medications to reduce kidney damage slowly. Some dogs may need steroids or other types of immunosuppressive drugs. Dogs with Lyme nephritis need frequent veterinary visits to control these drugs and make changes if necessary. Early antibiotic intervention will reduce the likelihood of your dog developing severe Lyme disease.

The cost of treating Lyme infection in dogs

The cost of treating Lyme disease in dogs depends on the size of the dog and your geographic location. However, this treatment doesn’t altogether remove the bacteria from the body. Therefore dogs may experience long-term effects of Borrelia infection, which may be more expensive to treat. As the disease progresses, dogs may experience kidney failure, worsening their quality of life.

Prevention

Lyme illness in dogs is easy to prevent with monthly tick prevention. Most tick prevention kills the tick when it bites and prevents disease transmission. Since ticks can bite all year round, it’s necessary to avoid ticks throughout the year. If you find a tick on your dog, gently remove it using tweezers or a tick removal tool. Call your veterinarian immediately if you feel uncomfortable doing this procedure at home.

Tick ​​prevention methods

The most effective tick prevention products require a prescription from your veterinarian and come in chewable and topical formulations. Many off-brand and cheap over-the-counter options that claim to kill ticks aren’t effective enough to keep your dog safe. Don’t compromise your dog’s health to save a lot of money. These products also may not kill ticks as quickly, so your dog could introduce ticks into the home that you or your family may infect.

Collars embedded in permethrin repel ticks and prevent your dog from biting. They are available without a prescription. These collars should only be purchased directly from reputable sources; Because many counterfeit copies are offered at discounted prices. Always check your and your dog for ticks after going into wooded areas or walking through tall grass. Ticks attach between the dog’s toes, armpits, thigh pockets and ears. However, ticks can be found anywhere on a dog’s body. But it isn’t limited to the body parts in contact with plants.

Vaccination

A vaccine against Lyme disease is available. However, this vaccine isn’t recommended for every dog; the risk of exposure to the disease varies by geographic location and lifestyle, and the vaccine isn’t completely effective. It’s estimated that the Lyme vaccine prevents 60-83% of infections. The best protection is to revaccinate against Lyme disease every 6 to 12 months. This vaccine shouldn’t be given to dogs that tested positive for Lyme disease. Many veterinarians in low-risk areas consider year-round tick prevention safer and more effective than the Lyme vaccine and, therefore, may not recommend it for your dog. Discuss this vaccine with your veterinarian if you’re interested in vaccinating your dog against Lyme infection.

Lyme in different dog breeds

Some dog breeds are prone to this disease, and we will introduce some of them in this section.

Dachshund

The dachshund breed has become very popular among people because of its short legs and elongated body, but these breeds are also prone to Lyme infection.

English bulldog

In contrast to having a relatively large and wide body, the English bulldog breed has short legs, which is very different from other dogs. These dogs are also susceptible to this disease.

Husky

Husky dogs are one of the favourite breeds among people. These dogs have big and robust bodies but are also prone to Lyme disease.

To wrap up

Lyme illness in dogs is one of the most common worldwide, although only 5-10% of dogs develop it. This disease is caused by a spirochete (a type of bacteria) from the Borrelia burgdorferi group. Research has shown that young dogs are more susceptible to this disease than older dogs. To have a healthy and lively dog, you need to pay attention to nutrition, activity, health, grooming, etc. You can prevent the disease and have a healthy dog in this case. In all these steps, you can count on the specialized team of MishkaGrooming. Our experienced and precise groomers have carefully and accurately groomed your dogs, so they count the moments before the next session.