Ruff Paws

Lyme disease in puppies is a sickness that is newly recognized. This type of dog disease is transmitted by deer ticks. Lyme disease in pets not only infects puppies but could also infect humans. The two seasons for the largest number of exposure to Lyme disease in pets is during spring through fall.

This dog disease appears mostly in the Midwestern and northwestern part of the US. Since 1975, several cases of Lyme disease in pets have been reported in more than 40 states.

Symptoms of Lyme disease in pets include fever, slowness, and sudden onset of lameness mixed with warmth, pain, and swelling in his joints. Sometimes a round area of inflamed skin around the tick bite may emerge with Lyme disease in pets, even though it may be hard to notice this due to the thickness of a dog's coat.

Call your vet right away when you notice any symptoms of Lyme disease in dogs. Those who recognize the early stages of Lyme disease can prevent your dog from suffering. When Lyme disease in your dog reaches its progressive stages of infection, your dog could suffer from paralysis. If this disease is left untreated, Lyme disease can attack the front and hind limbs. It will then attack the muscles in the chest area and even disable the respiratory muscles. This can cause the dog to suffocate.

-Articlesbase.com (2008)