Lyme Disease Awareness Month: 5 Facts About Lyme Disease in Dogs
It’s summer season and all may be planning for road trips, beaches, camping or heading to their backyard, but it is significant to know that the month of May is also entitled to be Lyme Disease Awareness Month. And, if you’re a dog-parent then you may be well-aware about how dogs are generally surrounded by many parasites either indoors or outdoors. Irrespective of the age, shape, size, and breed of dog these ubiquitous creatures always have their eyes on pets as they constantly strive to feed on a host.
Ticks play a major role in spreading Lyme disease on pets. Lyme disease is a zoonatic disease, which means that this illness affects both animals and humans. And, Lyme Disease Awareness Month is entirely dedicated to acknowledge pet-parents about how gnarly this disease can be. However, there are chances of lack of awareness among people regarding this zoonatic disease and that’s why we’ve come up with the important facts about lyme disease that every-parents should know. So, get into the details.
Lyme Disease Comes From Ticks
The tenacious ticks present in the environment attaches to the dog’s body by inserting their mouth parts into the dog’s skin. Ticks then remains attached to the dog’s body by producing a glue-like substance and eventually begin to feed in the dog’s blood. Ticks are bound to cause fatal diseases in pets if left untreated and one of them includes Lyme disease. Lyme disease can result into arthritis or swelling of the dog’s joints, which results in painful lameness.
Lyme Disease Take Time To Transmit
Ticks can be attached on any parts of the dog’s body and it can be hard to find. When an infected tick bites the dog it takes almost 24 to 48 hours to transmit Borrelia burgdorferi-a worm-like spiral headed bacterium that causes Lyme disease. And the time it takes to cause Lyme disease in pets can be beneficial to stop it’s further spread by quickly removing the ticks.
It’s Year Around Thread
Dangers in life don’t come with the seasons, same is the case with ticks. It’s a common conception that ticks die in winter and summer is an ideal season for them. The truth is that ticks can be found year around and not just in warmer climates. A study showed that some infected ticks developed a type of anti-freeze glycoprotein to survive in cold, which means that tick can infect your pet at anytime during the year.
Lyme Disease Isn’t Contagious In Pets
This is a zoonatic illness, but it isn’t communicable from one animal to another except through tick bites. Nevertheless, if your pet is diagnosed with Lyme disease and has another pet as well then it is wiser to test for any pets that have been exposed to ticks at the same time. Moreover, if any member of the family is diagnosed with Lyme disease then all family members might immediately consult the physician in order to proceed with further evaluation.
Preventing Lyme Disease Is Easy
Well, prevention is the best treatment. If you want to lower your pet’s risk of getting Lyme disease, then it is crucial to reduce the risk of exposure by avoiding tick-infested areas. Ensure to administer a monthly flea and tick preventives or use treatment that rapidly kills ticks.
It is essential to consult your vet before giving any monthly treatments to your pet. Moreover, highly effective vaccines for Lyme disease are also available for dogs. At the end of the day, the best way to protect your pet from Lyme disease is to provide him regular flea and tick treatments.