Lyme disease in dogs: dog owners must know this
Borreliosis is the most common infectious disease in Germany, which is transmitted to dogs by ticks. As it is often detected late, severe courses of Lyme disease in dogs with partly even permanent damage are not uncommon.
As a dog owner you should therefore know exactly how to recognise possible symptoms at an early stage, or ideally avoid an infection from the outset. What is important and how you can best protect your dog against Lyme disease is explained in the following.
How do dogs get infected with Lyme disease?
Ticks are endoparasites that feed on the blood of their host. They very often carry pathogens that can be transmitted to the host during the blood meal.
These pathogens include the Borrelia bacteria responsible for Lyme disease in dogs. This is a genus of bacteria. Of these, the species Borrelia garinii, Borrelia afzelii, and Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto are particularly important for dogs.
When a dog is bitten by a tick, the Borrelia bacteria migrate from the intestine into the salivary gland of the parasite. From there they enter the dog's body, spread through the bloodstream, and finally attack the joints and, to some extent, the nervous system and organs of the quadruped.
It takes about 16 to 24 hours for the Borrelia bacteria to be transmitted from the tick to the dog and thus become infected with Lyme disease. Immediate removal of the parasites can therefore significantly reduce the risk of disease.
Borreliosis is widespread in dogs in Germany
Ticks can infect dogs with babesiosis, anaplasmosis, and ehrlichiosis, among others. However, the most common disease for dogs after tick bites in Germany is Lyme disease.
On average, over 30 percent of ticks in Germany carry borrelia. In some regions, antibodies can be detected in up to 20 percent of all dogs.
What symptoms does Lyme disease cause in dogs?
Lyme disease has a rather long incubation period, during which infected dogs do not show any recognisable symptoms. Occasionally, a ring-shaped reddening of the skin around the injection site, known as itinerant redness, may initially occur. Unlike in humans, however, this is rarely seen in dogs or is difficult to detect because of the coat.
The first unspecific symptoms appear in dogs with Lyme disease about four to six weeks after the tick bites. In addition to a loss of appetite and exhaustion, dogs then usually develop a fever. As these symptoms can also indicate numerous other diseases, many owners do not initially recognise that their dog has Lyme disease.
Without treatment, it can happen that after several weeks or months, the Lyme disease triggers a second attack with further complaints.
In this case, painful joint inflammations occur, especially in the legs, which can lead to temporary lameness. In addition to the loss of appetite and fever, muscle pain and occasionally even organ damage can occur.
In certain breeds of dogs, such as the Golden Retriever and the Bernese Mountain Dog, infection with Lyme disease can in rare cases even cause fatal kidney failure.
How is Lyme disease treated in dogs?
Due to the unspecific symptoms and the long incubation period, it is sometimes difficult to detect a Lyme disease infection in dogs in a timely manner. However, an early start of therapy is essential for effective treatment.
If you observe possible symptoms of Lyme disease infection in your dog, you should therefore make an appointment with your vet immediately. To check your suspicion, the vet will examine your dog for Lyme disease using a rapid test.
If the test is positive, treatment with antibiotics is necessary. The medication prescribed by the vet must usually be administered over a period of up to four weeks.
What is the prognosis for dogs with Lyme disease?
With a bit of luck, Lyme disease in your dog can be treated well with suitable antibiotics and the symptoms subside very quickly. However, if the treatment is started late and the disease progresses slowly, it is quite possible that the treatment measures will remain unsuccessful and chronic complaints or permanent damage will occur.
How can Lyme disease in dogs be prevented?
Due to the often late diagnosis as well as the possible serious consequences that Lyme disease in dogs can have, dog owners should definitely deal with the topic of prevention.
In this context, protection against ticks, in particular, plays a major role. During the warm months of the year, we, therefore, recommend that you thoroughly check your dog for ticks after every walk in nature.
If you discover ticks in the coat, remove them immediately. If one of the parasites has already bitten, use special tick tongs or tweezers for this purpose.
Be careful to remove the tick completely and not to crush its body. Otherwise, they may even accelerate the transmission of any Borrelia bacteria to your dog.
Tick repellent as protection against borreliosis in dogs
Provided you remove ticks from your dog promptly, the chances that he has not yet become infected with Lyme disease are generally quite good. Nevertheless, we advise you to additionally protect your dog from the blood-sucking parasites during the tick season with a suitable tick repellent.
However, you should avoid products with chemical agents and instead give preference to natural products. A tick repellent that does not unnecessarily burden your dog's organism is, for example, ZEComplete from Bellfor.
Bellfor ZEComplete contains insect fat and various oils with a high lauric acid content. As studies have shown, this medium-chain fatty acid acts as a deterrent to ticks and can therefore help to reduce the risk of your dog contracting Lyme disease.
Can dogs be vaccinated against Lyme disease?
For dogs that are outdoors a lot and live in a risk area, vaccination against Lyme disease can be useful. The available vaccine protects against all three Borrelia species relevant to Germany.
Basic immunisation can be started for dogs from the age of 12 weeks. The vaccination protection lasts about one year and should ideally be refreshed in spring.
In combination with a natural tick repellent and the prompt removal of existing ticks, the vaccination provides dogs with comprehensive protection against Lyme disease.
Our conclusion about Lyme disease in dogs
As you can see, the risk of dogs being infected with Lyme disease is very high in Germany. In addition, without early treatment, the disease can cause permanent damage and in rare cases even be fatal.
To protect your dog from Lyme disease, you must therefore avoid an infestation with ticks as much as possible. A natural tick repellent such as Bellfor ZEComplete is perfectly suited for this purpose.
In risk areas, it may also be advisable to vaccinate your dog against Lyme disease to ensure optimum protection against infection.
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