Dr. Stafford Tick Management Handbook - Newtown, CT

StaffordThe Connecticut Agricultural Experimentation Stationthat Bartonella can be transmitted to humans by a tick bite. The ability of ticks to transmit thesebacteria in the laboratory or . eld still needs to be determined.Lyme Borreliosis in Domestic and Companion Animals64Swollen joints in a dog with Lymedisease (Levy).Domestic animals (dogs, cats, horses, cows, and goats) canbecome infected with B. burgdorferi and develop clinical Lymeborreliosis. Lameness and swollen joints, fever, lymph nodeenlargement, reduced appetite, and a reluctance to move are theusual symptoms in these animals. Disease is more common indogs and relatively less frequent in cats. Most dogs (47-73%of unvaccinated animals) in a Lyme disease endemic area willeventually become infected (based on positive serology) due totheir high exposure to ticks and about 5% will develop diseaseeach year. Limb and joint arthritis is the most frequent sign incanine Lyme borreliosis; cardiac, neurological, ophthalmic, anda unique renal involvement is less common. Lyme nephritis indogs often results in the death of the animal, even with aggressivetreatment. Animals are treated with antibiotics (tetracyclineor penicillin-group) and nonsteroidal anti-in. ammatory drugsfor relief of Lyme arthritis. Most dogs’ arthritis respondsdramatically to antibiotic treatment within days, followed by acomplete recovery. Chronic disease appears rare, and a lack of response to therapy may suggestanother diagnosis. Other disease processes, which should be ruled out, include rheumatoid arthritis,infectious arthritides, and other tick-borne diseases such as Rocky Mountain spotted fever andehrlichiosis. However, studies have shown that infection and antibody titers may persist in dogsafter ef. cacious treatment. It is not clear if a reoccurrence of disease is due to another tick exposureor from the initial infection. Some data suggest that treatment in the absence of clinical diseasefor seropositive dogs may be indicated. Prevention in companion animals is covered in the hostmanagement section.Additional sources of information about tick-associated diseasesThe Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Infectious Diseases,Division of Vector-Borne Infectious Diseases, P.O. Box 2087, Fort Collins, Colorado, 80522 andDivision of Viral and Rickettsial Diseases, 1600 Clifton Road, NE, MS G-13, Atlanta, Georgia30333 (404-639-1075). The CDC provides details on the natural history, epidemiology, reportedcases, signs & symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, prevention & control for several zoonotic diseases,including Lyme disease (www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/lyme/index.htm).State health departments can provide information on the incidence of Lyme disease and othertick-borne illnesses in the state. There is usually a division or department that handles Lyme diseaseand other vector-borne diseases. Statistics are sometimes available on a department’s web site.Lyme disease foundations or groups can provide information or patient support. These includethe American Lyme Disease Foundation, Inc. (ALDF), www.aldf.com and the Lyme DiseaseFoundation (LDF), www.Lyme.org.Additional information related to tick-associated diseases, tick bite prevention, tick testingresults for Connecticut, and the electronic version of this handbook are available on The ConnecticutAgricultural Experiment Station’s website, www.ct.gov/caes.34Bulletin No. 1010