Dogs are man’s favorite pet. Some even considered them as part of the family. Dog owners nurture and care about their pets just as a parent to a young kid. They are being fed, groomed and nurtured. Each time the dog is sick, it is taken to a specific doctor for animals known as veterinarian. Clearly, one of the most common health complaints when raising dogs are tick infestation.

Ticks are blood sucking pests. Some say that they belong to the same family of spiders and mites. They are arachnids, although many still think that ticks are insects. Ticks are damaging because they are vectors to a number of diseases. As mentioned earlier, they suck on their hosts. By sucking, they get to transmit diseases from one host to another.

Generally, when a dog is affected by ticks, the most common symptoms evident are fever, sudden loss of desire for food, irritation, swelling in the area, laziness and depression. Dog owners should report these symptoms to their vets for prompt prognosis and management.

If tick bites are not managed, it can develop into serious complications. Complications from tick bites often have generalized symptoms. It is consequential to know the various complications of tick bites in order to arrest the condition as soon as possible. Following are some of them:

Ehrlichiosis
Brown dog tick bites and lone star tick bites are the most common causes of this condition. The causative agent is rickettsia organism. It is bacteria. Some thought that this condition is viral because it produces flu like symptoms. The common symptoms of this condition range from loss of desire for food to fever, joint pain, anemia and bruising. Other possible symptoms are eye swelling and decrease levels of all types of blood cells. Generally, the management for Ehrlichiosis includes antibiotic therapy like doxycycline or tetrachycline.

Anaplasmosis
This condition is often misguided as Ehrlichiosis because their symptoms are relatively equivalent. Pets that are suffering from Anasplasmosis and Ehrlichiosis can show signs of fever, headache, muscle pain, chils, queasiness and lethargy. Nevertheless, their causative factors are different. If Ehrlichiosis is caused by rickettsia organism, Anasplasmosis on the other hand is caused by rickettsial parasite of ruminants. Same management with Ehrlichiosis, antibiotic therapy is the most excellent management for Anaplasmosis.

Tick Bite Paralysis
This is not common in dogs. When the female wood or mountain ticks release a toxin, this condition usually follows. The toxin blocks the interaction between the muscles and the nervous system. When the nerve function is stopped it consequently results to paralysis. Watch out for signs of weakness, difficulty of breathing and walking. The most excellent management for tick bite paralysis is elimination of ticks. Once the tick is removed, the dog is on its way to recovery. Nevertheless, complete recovery is achieved in twenty four to seventy two hours. If symptoms on the other hand become critical or if the paralysis has progressed intravenous fluid may be given or the dog may require a ventilator to assist in breathing.

Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever
This condition is very fatal. Some countries call this disease as tick typhus and Tobia fever. The disease is transmitted by the bite of the Rocky Mountain wood tick or the American dog tick. Rickettsia then enters the dog in the tick spit. The most common signs and symptoms of Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever are hyperthermia, nausea and vomiting, decrease in desire for food, muscle pain and headache. Late signs of the disease are Petechial and maculopapular rash, abdominal and joint pain. Doxycycline is the medication of choice for the management of this disease.

Tick bites should not be taken for granted. It can bring about complications and the symptoms are very daunting. Prevention is still most excellent key to deal with tick infestation. So be sure to maintain a tick free home environment!

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