Tick Paralysis in my dog.

VickiP
VickiP Posts: 586 ✭✭✭✭
edited November 2020 in Help! Health Troubleshooting

We live in the Ozarks , in the woods. Ticks are an ongoing concern. I have one dog that I use a topical preventative on and it works pretty well, the other has to have an ingestable, prescription preventative. But nothing is 100%, so she does still get a tick from time to time. Last week we noticed she was having a hard time getting up and she had a swelling in her neck, under her jaw. I called the vet and they immediately suspected Tick Paralysis. We took her in and they examined her did some blood work and sure enough, that is what it was. She has recovered well, they had to get the suspected tick off and the swelling was her lymph nodes as she had developed a secondary infection so she has to take an antibiotic. If you live in a tick prone area be aware of this illness. Usually they don't require any meds, just getting the tick off will start recovery as long as you catch it early. Anyway I thought everyone needed to be made aware of this illness. It can affect humans too.

Comments

  • Linda Bittle
    Linda Bittle Posts: 1,518 ✭✭✭✭✭

    As I get ready to leave Idaho to return to southern Missouri, that's one of the things on my mind. Except for some voracious mosquitoes, I've not had much trouble with biting insects here. Oh, I've picked a couple of dog ticks off Sammy when we have been in tall grass, but The last time I had a tick bite was in 2006, when I left Missouri to move to Washington.

    Having said that, a local woman got a case of Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever after camping out near here.

    I've asked my vet about putting Sammy on heart-worm meds. He says there's no contraindication with his seizure meds. But I worry. Of course, I'll do it. but I hate it. Not sure which type will work best for him, so I'll have to trust the vets down there.

    I was reading up on tick paralysis and hope I'll recognize it. Seizures, for Sammy, often start with stumbling and leg weakness.


  • VickiP
    VickiP Posts: 586 ✭✭✭✭

    Yeah, she fortunately is doing fine, but it has been fatal for some animals. The key is to remove all the ticks ASAP. For her they just gave her a tick removal pill that made them all fall off. They kept her all afternoon and she started feeling better pretty quickly. If it happens you will realize there is a problem right away, she went down pretty fast. The day before she couldn't get up she stopped eating and just looked at us in misery.There is nothing quite as sad looking as a black lab with a boo boo.

  • Torey
    Torey Posts: 5,679 admin

    I just received a newsletter from The School for Aromatic Studies with a link to a long, extensive, well referenced article about several tick species. Close to the end are suggestions on what to use for tick repellents. Because the repellents contain essential oils, I'm not sure of their use on pets. Doc Jones might be able to give some advice on that. But good for us to be able to use when walking in heavily infested areas. Ticks are very, very bad in our area this year.

    https://aromaticstudies.com/ticked-off-essential-oils-for-pest-control/

  • VickiP
    VickiP Posts: 586 ✭✭✭✭

    I know with cats you have to be really careful using oils and even herbs, I have never really looked into dogs as mine are so healthy normally, the only problems have been snake bite and various wounds. They are getting older so I probably should do some research and have some well chosen remedies on hand.