What an unpleasant surprise.
This week we took our toy poodle Chris to the vet for his wellness visit. Because he’s nearly 12 years of age, we expected that maybe Chris’s thyroid would be a tad sluggish. (It’s fine.)
We know Chris has dental problems, too, a condition our vet refers to as “poodle mouth.” Can you say halitosis? Teeth cleaning in March will rectify that issue.
But we were dumbfounded to learn that Chris is suffering from canine anaplasmosis, a tick-borne disease caused by the organism Anaplasma phagocytophilum.
Each year our vet runs the SNAP 4Dx test from IDEXX Laboratories. This amazing blood test determines within minutes right in the vet’s office if your pet has heartworm disease (caused by a mosquito bite) or anaplasmosis, Ehrlichiosis, or Lyme Disease. The latter three illnesses are caused by the bite of an infected deer tick.
Our corner of Rhode Island should be called Tick Village instead of South County. We are at the epicenter, it seems, for tick diseases. This doesn’t exactly give us bragging rights, if you know what we mean.
In fact, tick-borne illnesses have become so widespread--in people and in pets--that we devote a whole page at Cape Rose Toy Poodles to Ticks and Tick Diseases. Our obsession with ticks began when we first became ill with Lyme Disease the same summer that Chris came down with Ehrlichiosis. To say we have practiced every possible precaution since then would be an understatement. You can read just how proactive we are on the Ticks and Tick Diseases page.
But somehow another tick got to Chris, apparently this winter.
The scary part is, Chris demonstrated no noticeable symptoms. Anaplasmosis can be like that...until it’s late in the game and difficult to cure. Sure, some of Chris’s blood results are “off.” For one thing, he’s anemic. But Chris never displayed lethargy or appetite loss, two fairly nonspecific but common symptoms of anaplasmosis. Then again, toy poodles think their role in life is simply to look cute while people dote on them. Think: they’re in the AKC’s Toy group, not the Working or Herding category. Nuf said?
On a serious note, though, IDEXX Laboratories explains that symptoms often do go unnoticed.
“Dogs exposed to Anaplasma phagocytophilum (E. equi) are at risk of becoming sick. Unfortunately, pet owners aren’t aware of infection until their dogs become seriously ill. Testing helps you detect exposure and infection, and reinforces the importance of tick control.”
We’re confident of a good outcome for Chris. He’s on the antibiotic doxycycline for the next three weeks. Then our vet will do a followup CBC (complete blood count) to determine his status.
Meantime, we are thankful that smart scientists like those at IDEXX Laboratories have devised quick and easy tests like the one our vet used for Chris. Kudos to them and to savvy veterinarians who routinely test their patients for insidious diseases like anaplasmosis.
We sincerely hope you will visit Ticks and Tick Diseases to learn more about tick-borne illnesses, ongoing research at the University of Rhode Island, and ways to help prevent tick diseases from hurting you. your pets, or your human loved ones.
Until next time,
Cindy
(Mr. Dibs is busy blogging at http://toypoodles.blogspot.com today.)
