Is Your Pet Current on Flea/Tick Preventatives?
Did you know that May is Lyme disease awareness month? While this disease isn’t very prevalent in our area, it’s still very important to highlight prevention of Lyme and other tick-related diseases, especially Ehrlichia, which we have seen often in Southern Missouri.
First off—if your pet isn’t currently taking monthly flea/tick preventatives, do yourself (and your pet) a favor by getting them on these products as soon as possible! Prevention is the best way to keep pets free from fleas and ticks, and by keeping these critters away from your pet, you keep their diseases away, too.
As we mentioned earlier, we do see a lot of Ehrlichia, which can not only affect animals, but humans as well. Ehrlichia is spread by the bite of the brown dog tick, which can also spread Babesiosis and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever.
When a dog does get Ehrlichia, there are three phases to the illness: acute, subclinical and chronic.
The acute phase usually occurs one to three weeks after an infected tick bites a dog. The dog will be listless, off food and can also have enlarged lymph nodes and fever. While the canine may appear very sick, the acute phase is rarely life-threatening. If dogs get treated early in this stage, they usually recover. If they don’t, it’s on to the next phase.
Dogs in the subclinical phase may appear normal and can even be in this phase for months or even years. The only way of knowing for sure if they are in the subclinical phase would be through a blood test. From here, the dog may progress to the chronic stage, which is worse.
In the chronic phase, the canine will get sick again and may suffer from deep inflammation in the eyes as well as neurological effects. They will also be impacted through severe cell deficiencies, which are associated with high death rates. The chronic stage is very difficult to treat, and a blood transfusion may be needed.
Ehrlichia is indeed a disease that we see often in our area. While infected canines can recover, the best way to keep your dog safe from this (and other tick-borne diseases) is prevention! As we stated earlier, if your pet isn’t on a monthly flea and tick preventative, we highly suggest that you get them on preventatives sooner, rather than later.
For any questions about Ehrlichia, or if you’d like to order products or request an appointment, contact us at 417-324-7201 or request an appointment online.