Most dogs love being outside. Yet while it may enjoy daily walking and playtime in the yard or park, the risk of an infected tick biting the dog increases the more often it's outside. Understanding the gestation period of Lyme disease caused by the bite from an infected tick goes a long way in helping you recognize signs of the disease. Early detection and treatment of Lyme disease leads to a better prognosis for your dog.
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Lyme Disease
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Lyme disease results when a tick, infected with bacteria known as Borrelia burgdorferi, bites a dog. Once bitten, the bacteria travel in the dog's blood stream and attack the dog's nervous system, among other systems in the body.
Gestation Period
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Unlike humans who develop a rash within days of infection, a dog's symptoms can take longer to appear. In fact, it takes as many as two to five months before the dog shows signs that it's sick. Lyme disease also impacts younger dogs more severely than older dogs. In addition, Lyme disease can lay dormant in a dog for an indefinite amount of time before the first symptoms appear.
Common Symptoms
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According to Ron Hines DVM, the first symptoms the dog is infected are generally joint pain accompanied by a fever. Joint pain can last several weeks and even months. As the disease progresses, the dog may develop swollen lymph nodes, although few dogs experience heart and neurological problems that are common symptoms in humans. Swollen lymph nodes combined with joint pain results in lameness in some dogs that shifts from one limb to another. Front limbs more so than back ones are prone to lameness. In advanced stages of the disease, the dog may have kidney problems, causing the dog to urinate frequently, among other debilitating issues.
Diagnosis
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Since it can take several months for symptoms to show up in dogs, the disease sometimes is misdiagnosed. Moreover, Lyme disease affects dogs differently, which can make diagnosis a challenge. In fact, some dogs infected with the bacteria show no signs or symptoms. The disease is only diagnosed when a blood test is done during the dog's regular veterinary check-up. The test indicates whether the dog is exposed to the bacteria and not the extent of the infection or whether the dog is experiencing symptoms. The veterinarian must take a second blood sample to measure how much of the bacteria are present.
Treatment
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The best treatment is a preventative Lyme disease vaccine administered by the veterinarian. It must be given every year to ensure protection. The vaccine provides the best defense to protecting the dog when it's bitten by an infected tick. Lyme disease is generally treated with a 30-day medication called doxycycline, which is an antibiotic. An anti-inflammatory medicine is prescribed to dogs with joint inflammation to reduce symptoms. Dogs with kidney issues are given a special diet to ease digestion. Antibiotics are effective in treating Lyme in its early stages, although continued monitoring of the dog's kidneys is generally needed to ensure the disease doesn't spread to these organs, requiring more aggressive treatment.
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