Ticks and Lyme Disease

For years one of the wonderful things about living in central NY was that we did not have Lyme disease. Sorry to say, that’s no longer true. Lyme disease is a bacterial infection spread by deer ticks (heaven knows we have plenty of deer in our area). It often goes unnoticed, but can lead to symptoms that include lameness, joint pain, fever lethargy and loss of appetite. In severe cases, it can cause inflammation in the kidneys and can be fatal. For the last few years monitoring agencies like the DEC, State Health Department and veterinary community have watched Lyme disease move westward from it’s origin in Connecticut. (See www.dogsandticks.com for more information.) We started seeing our first cases at Cazenovia Animal Hospital two summers ago, more last year and even more this year. All predictions are that the trend will continue at an increasing rate.

Up until now, the strategy to protect our dog population has been strict tick control: “If there is no snow on the ground, Fido should be on a prescription-strength tick control medicine”. There are several to choose from and we carry them at the Cazenovia Animal Hospital. However, as the threat has increased the doctors at the Cazenovia Animal Hospital feel that it is time to “ratchet-up” protection with a second wall of defense. We are now recommending Lyme disease vaccination for all healthy dogs.

If your dog has had his annual visit and other vaccines within the last 6 months and is healthy, the initial vaccine and the booster 3 weeks later can be given without you having to bear the cost of an office visit fee – simply give us a call and we’ll set you up to see a licensed veterinary technician for two quick visits. If your dog’s last routine appointment was more than 6 months ago or he has on-going medical conditions, we’ll need to see him in a regular appointment to update his physical and make sure he’s healthy so we can begin the vaccine protocol. It is important to understand that the vaccination does not replace tick control but is recommended in addition to it.

Call our office for more information or to schedule an appointment to have your dog vaccinated soon.