Dogs face new danger from tick borne disease

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Dogs face new danger from tick borne disease

By: DIANA LADDEN


HILLSDALE-A week ago Saturday he was a healthy, happy hunting dog pursuing his genetically determined career with vigor, eating with gusto and taking the occasional recreational swim in the pond. This week, having been examined and treated by local vets and specialists in Westchester County and after having been revived with CPR three times at home, he died in his owner's arms.

The dog, a pointer, was exhausted by multiple systemic failures that resulted from a tick borne disease-not Lyme disease-that has not, until now, been part of routine screening by many local vets.

Over a weekend of telling the story to friends, four other people had stories about the deaths of animals that sounded eerily familiar. For the last several years, Columbia County has had the highest per capita rate of Lyme disease infection among humans in the United States. But Lyme and other tick borne diseases also affect dogs; and with such a large population of ticks, it's not surprising that man's best friend is exposed to some of their owners' least-welcome problems.

The illnesses involved are ehrlichiosis and babesiosis. And while they are carried by ticks, they require different types of treatment.

Robin Moretti, a veterinary technician at Mountain View Animal Hospital in Greenport says that although commonly used diagnostic tests identify heartworm, Lyme disease and ehrlichiosis, there is a new strain of ehrlichiosis, called canine anaplasmosis. It requires a new test marketed by companies like IDEXX, in Westbrook, Maine. "Be sure to ask your vet for the diagnostic test that includes the new strain of ehrlichiosis," said Ms. Moretti.

She adds that because the most common signs of erlichiosis are hidden, all dogs should be screened.

Ehrlichiosis was first identified in dogs in Algeria in 1935. It can also affect cattle, sheep, goats, horses and people. In the 1970s, military dogs returned from Viet Nam with the tick borne disease (TBDs), earning it the nickname "tracker dog disease."

The agent that causes the disease is a rickettsial organism similar to a bacterium. It is transmitted through the bite of infected ticks. The brown dog tick is the most common carrier.

According to canine infectious disease experts, the greatest challenge in battling ehrlichosis and babesiosis is accurately diagnosing the signs, and this is one of the major reasons for the disease being underreported and misdiagnosed.

The diseases are nearly asymptomatic until quite advanced and often mimic other diseases.

According to Ibulaimu Kakoma, DVM, Ph.D., an expert on tick borne diseases in animals, the two keys to success to thwarting these illnesses are early recognition and proper treatment.

Treatment with antibiotics can produce favorable results, but treatment with steroids or drugs not in the tetracycline class can "have tragic repercussions," he says.

TBDs go through three states: acute, sub-acute and chronic.

The acute phase takes place one to four weeks after infection. The dog may have flu-like symptoms: fever, lethargy, loss of appetite, diarrhea and lameness. The dog may act as if it is painful to be touched and yelp when picked up. Laboratory tests at this stage could show decreased red blood cells and increased white blood cells. Liver, kidney or pancreatic enzymes may be elevated. Antibiotic therapy is recommended to thoroughly eliminate the organism.

If the animal is not treated during the acute stage, the illness moves into a sub-acute stage, characterized by a stabilization of body weight. Any abnormalities in lab tests are subtle. This phase can last months or years, with the parasite living within the host and not overwhelming the immune system. But if the animal is affected by factors like an increase in stress, surgery, excessive work, pregnancy or a combination of other diseases, the organism can assert itself and the condition of the dog becomes chronic. The parasite sometimes lives in a specific organ, making it difficult to treat. It can also impair the animal's immune system, causing death.

Humans do get tick borne diseases, but not from their dogs, cats, horses or any other domestic animals. They must be bitten by the tick. Ehrlichiosis is unusual in cats.

Dr. William Rasweiler, of Copake Veterinary Clinic, told The Independent Monday that his practice will be recommending the IDEXX 4Dx test.

"Don't panic, but we do have more concerns than before. It is no longer just Lyme, but a multitude of tick borne diseases. The movement of animals from different areas and the mild winter weather are the main things in terms of increased tick borne disease," he said.