Several diseases
can be transmitted to dogs and cats from ticks.
Therefore, keeping pets that have access to the outdoors protected from
ticks is essential to their overall health.
There are many good tick prevention medications available.
The four most
common tick borne diseases that affect dogs in the United States are Lyme
disease, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Ehrlichiosis, and Tick Paralysis. In most cases, the tick must be attached for
several hours before they can transmit these diseases. So, if ticks are promptly removed from your
pet, it will greatly reduce their risk of developing a tick borne disease.
Lyme Disease
Lyme
disease is caused by bacteria. The
symptoms include: lameness, fever, swollen lymph nodes and joints, and a
reduced appetite. In severe cases,
animals may develop kidney disease, heart conditions, or nervous system
disorders. Animals do not develop the "Lyme disease rash" that is
commonly seen in humans.
Lyme
disease is treated with oral antibiotics.
Since this is a bacterial infection, the animal doesn’t develop an
immunity and can contract an infection again.
Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever
(RMSF)
The symptoms of
RMSF are similar to Lyme disease and include: fever, reduced appetite,
depression, pain in the joints, lameness, vomiting, and diarrhea. Some animals may
develop heart abnormalities, pneumonia, kidney failure, liver damage, or even
neurological signs (e.g., seizures, stumbling).
Similar to Lyme
disease, RMSF is treated with antibiotics.
However, unlike Lyme disease, dogs usually do develop an immunity to
future infections.
Ehrlichiosis
Erhlichiosis is
caused by a rickettsial organism. Common
symptoms include depression, reduced appetite (anorexia), fever, stiff and
painful joints, and bruising. Signs
typically appear less than a month after a tick bite and last for about four
weeks.
Treatment of
Ehrlichiosis usually involves an extended course of antibiotics. Animals will develop antibodies against the
organism, but can become re-infected.
Tick Paralysis
Tick paralysis is
a strange condition caused by a toxin released by the tick when it attaches to
the pet. Dogs that are sensitive to the
toxin can develop weakness in the hind limbs that can progress to complete
paralysis. Owners usually notice a
sudden unexplained paralysis in an otherwise healthy dog. Removal of the tick will lead to a complete
recovery.
Cats can be
infected by all of the above organisms, but do not tend to be as severely
affected. However, additional tick borne
organisms can cause severe infections in cats.
These are discussed below.
Haemobartonellosis
This infection
is also known as Feline Infectious Anemia.
The organism attacks the cat’s red blood cells and can lead to severe
anemia and weakness. Cats will often
need to be hospitalized and may need blood transfusions if the anemia has
become severe.
Tularemia
This is also
known as Rabbit Fever. Cats will show
symptoms of a high fever, swollen lymph nodes, nasal discharge, and possibly
abscesses at the site of the tick bite. Younger animals are usually at a higher
risk of contracting tularemia.
Cytauxzoonsis
This disease is
common in wild cats, such as the bobcat.
Ticks that feed off the wild cats can then transmit the disease to
domestic cats. Symptoms include: anemia,
depression, high fever, difficulty breathing, and jaundice (i.e., yellowing of
the skin). Treatment is often unsuccessful and death can occur in as short as
one week following infection.
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