Dog has weird tick borne desease

[+Alan2]

Buddy's finally coming out of 6 weeks of heavy duty, two types of antibiotic treatment with heavy vitamin doses that the vet thinks he got some off beat Erichliosis, a tick borne desease. At one point they thought he had cancer, his blood levels were all over the place. They did the standard tick checks (he's had Rocky Mountain Spoted Fever and Lyme once before), but couldn't tag this one but were pretty convinced it was tick borne. He was constantly sleeping, drinking water although his appetite was OK (figures!), sometime totally out of it. Anyone heard of any new tick desease out there effecting dogs?

 

Be safe out there!

[Hillbilly-Rockstar]

For those who don't have Google- Google.com. Search the symptoms and such.

___

 

Anyway I hope your dog gets better. Those symptoms (sp?) your dog has are normal for my dog.

 

-Eric

Edited August 15, 2006 by Hillbilly-Rockstar

[+mtn-man]

I tell you, I've been so nervous about ticks with J.C. that I have not taken him to any caches this summer until yesterday. I figure the chance of some infection is just not worth it. After pulling 40 off of me at one cache right before I got to GW4, I've been a bit freaky about him.

 

I hope you pup feels better.

[+markp99]

Our dog Sparky exhibited progressively worsening symptoms over a year ago: Listnessness, weight gain, strange odor, hair loss. He had neck surgery a year before that (herniated disk), so we thought this was possibly related to constant low-level pain he might have been feeling and just not "yelping" about.

 

We truely thought he was on his way out.

 

We brought him to a new vet. She quickly recognized his symptoms as being related to a thyroid disorder and prescribed synthroid (a variant of what my wife had taken in the past). Within just a couple weeks, we noticed changes in old Sparky; his energy level improved. It's more than a year later and Sparky is the picture of health, he is slim and trim, hair has grown back and his energy level is very high. He's like a new dog, more like a puppy than the 11 yr old that he is.

 

Sparky's groomer and pet sitters both comment that they cannot believe the change in him. We are still amazed daily at the change in him, even >1yr later. Sometimes in the evenings, he'll just drag his front paws on the floor (like a bullfighting bull), will crouch and then hop forward in excitement, "I feel good!" Too funny.

 

So, it might be worth a simple blood test for you dog, or a second opinion with another vet.

 

Good luck!

[+sbell111]

... Those symptoms your dog has are normal for my dog.

I was thinking the same thing. Darby the Wonder Pup turned 16 a little while back and Alan2's dog's symptoms pretty much describe all of Darby's summer activities.

Edited August 15, 2006 by sbell111

[+Alan2]

Thanks for all the cheerful upbeat posts. Buddy's doing great recently and almost normal the last couple of days. I think that's related to the antibiotics finally kicking in. He's only 8 and this thing came on pretty quickly so now that it appears to be reversing, my wife's tickled. (Me too.) But she tells me, no more woods for him. I have to go by myself! (strange she doesn't say no more woods for me. Hmmm.)

 

Ticks really take the fun out of caching. It's really bad out there.

[+Instant Coffee]

I am glad to hear Buddy is doing well ! I find information and have recommended the CDC website for information on infectious diseases and emerging diseases. I have not heard anything about new tick borne diseases. However nothing beats going to your veterinarian or your doctor.

 

http://www.cdc.gov/healthypets/index.htm

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/index.htm

 

I also had a tick experience at a multi cache this spring, Smithmill Devil (63 total)). I was itching the rest of the day and night.

http://www.geocaching.com/seek/log.aspx?LU...4d-394ab072b8ee