Nov 14, 2018 Tracey Aston Health & Wellness
Most pet parents see fleas and ticks as an irritating
nuisance; however, they are much more and are linked to several health concerns
that could affect your pets. Almost
everyone has heard of Lyme disease and its association with deer ticks but that
is only the tip of a very dangerous iceberg.
Fleas are the most common type of external parasite to
infest our pets. Fleas are very tiny, about the size of a pen or pencil tip,
and can be easily overlooked until it's an infestation. Fleas will hide in any
area of your pet, including stomach, base of tail, armpits, inside of your
pet's ears, paw pads and even toenails. If you are visually noticing fleas on
your pet, know there are many more you can't see. The first sign of fleas on
your pet is flea excrement, which will look like your pet has dirty skin. If
your pet is playing outside or around dirt, the dirt will most likely stay on
your pet's coat. Flea dirt is under the coat, on your pet's skin.
The most common health concern of a flea infestation is
infection. Fleas reproduce quickly and abundantly, therefore, a single flea can easily cause an infestation. Fleas or flea secretions can cause an
allergic reaction to your pets just by being on them, even without biting them.
Signs of an allergic reaction are itching, scratching, and hives. Pets experiencing fleas will show signs of
unrelenting scratching and biting, and in doing so, could open a wound. Our
pets' paws and mouth are rife with bacteria and opening a wound with a dirty
paw or mouth is the fast track to a potentially nasty skin infection. Signs of a skin infection could be hair loss,
redness, bumps, crusty looking skin and pus or discharge.
Tapeworms, Heart Murmurs, Anemia and Bartonella, aka cat
scratch fever, can be caused by fleas. Swallowing an infected flea while
licking or chewing the affected area, your pet may develop a tapeworm. Fleas feed off your pet by sucking their
blood, and an untreated flea infection could cause your dog to become anemic from
blood loss and even lead to heart murmur. A Bartonella infection can cause
fever, vomiting, diarrhea, seizures and swelling of the lymph nodes and is
spread by a flea infected with the parasite biting your pet.
If a flea infestation does occur, acting quickly and swiftly
is a vital to stopping the spread of these rapidly reproducing parasites. Fleas
will infest carpets, throw rugs, bedding, cars and clothing. Fleas aren't just
preferential to animals, and they will jump on and bite humans too. The best
way to get rid of fleas is to treat everything with Borax, which is safe for
both humans and pets. Borax will not only kill the living fleas, but dry up any
flea eggs. Start by sprinkling Borax on all carpeting, getting as close to
the baseboards as possible, and then thoroughly vacuum the area. You may need
to do this several times a week at in the beginning until the infestation is
resolved.
Ticks are small, brown or black, non-flying insects that
survive by feeding on the blood of mammals. An engorged tick, meaning one that
has recently eaten, may appear light brown, grey or even light tan. Owners may be unaware a tick as attached to
their pet because they don't recognize the color change. Ticks have been confused with harmless skin
tags and vice versa. They can be similar in appearance, but always look for
signs of movement, rapid growth or little black legs when finding something new
on your pet. If you are unsure if it is
a tick or a skin tag, visit your veterinarian to make sure. An untreated tick,
living off your pet could cause serious illness and paralysis. In the
comparison pictures below, notice in the first picture, black legs can easily
still be seen on an attached tick.
If you do notice a tick on your pet, the easiest way to
remove it is with a tick key or tick twist. Tick keys and tick twists can be
easily found online or your local pet store. To use a tick key, place the key
over the entire body of the tick in the large part of the tear shaped slot of
the key. Slide the key along the skin, pulling the key away from the tick until
it is removed. Immediately dispose of the tick by putting it into rubbing
alcohol, a sealed baggy or flushing it down the toilet. Make sure to clean the area with rubbing
alcohol after removal and apply Neosporin to the area. Continually check the
area for signs of an allergic reaction or infection like redness, irritation,
itching, hives and bleeding.
The most often heard about tick-borne illness is of course
Lyme Disease. While all tick bites are serious, it should be noted that not all
ticks carry Lyme and a bite is not a certain diagnosis. It can take 6-8 weeks
after a bite before your pet will even test positive for Lyme Disease and
possibly 2-5 months before any symptoms can occur. It should be noted, if your pet has received
the Lyme vaccine they will always test positive for Lyme Disease because of the
vaccination. In Dr. Jean Dodd's article,
Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases in Dogs she states “Choosing the Lyme Vaccine
for your pet needs to be weighed heavily. First, you should consider the
documented case risk for Lyme disease in your area. Second, you need to assess
the exposure risk imposed by your lifestyle. Even in high-exposure risk areas,
I would lean to not automatically vaccinating for Lyme disease, because
preventative and treatment measures are easily available and reliable.” “Also, even Lyme vaccinated dogs can develop
disease as efficacy of the product is only about 60 to 70 % in preventing
disease. Thus, antibiotic therapy should be used in vaccinated dogs that are
developing Lyme disease symptoms, just as it is used to treat in non-vaccinated
Lyme-diseased dogs.” Symptoms of Lyme's
Disease are lameness and sore joints, fever, lethargy and enlarged lymph nodes.
If symptoms do occur after a bite, seek veterinary treatment as dog's respond
well to treatment with an antibiotic, normally Doxycycline.
I'm sure as a pet parent you've been warned about the
dangers of ticks but Lyme isn't even close to the only tick borne illness you
should know about. Ehrlichiosis, Anaplasmosis, Rocky Mountain Spotted-Fever and
Babesiosis are also associated with various ticks indigenous to our local
area. These are very serious disease
with symptoms ranging from fever, loss of appetite to joint pain, lethargy
and in extreme causes, pale gums, nose bleeds, seizures and even death.
The most obvious way to protect your pet is prevention and
with the prevalence of fleas and ticks, this is a constant battle. While veterinarians will most likely push a
topical or oral treatment, there are many natural preventatives that don't
carry the risk of chemicals. Topical
treatments can cause skin irritation, allergic reactions and chemical burns.
Oral preventives come with even stronger warnings, according to the NBC News
article Flea,
tick pills can cause nerve reactions in pets, FDA warns “Pills or chews that protect dogs and cats
against fleas can cause neurological problems such as stumbling or seizures,
and pet owners need more warning, the Food and Drug Administration said.” Work
with your veterinarian and weigh all your options before deciding on a topical
or oral flea and tick prevention.
Some natural preventatives to traditional topical and oral prevention are: - Due to the lauric acid, coconut oil kills and repels fleas when applied to the coat and as an added bonus coconut oil also moisturizes your pet's skin.
- Another common ingredient found in most kitchens is apple cider vinegar. Apple cider vinegar can be added to your pet's drinking water or can be diluted in water in a 1:1 mixture and applied directly to your pet's coat.
- A few drops cedarwood oil diluted in water can be applied to the pet's coat. Check manufacture for the dilution ratio.
- Very small amounts of garlic can also be added to your pet's diet as flea prevention. The amount of garlic added goes by your pet's weight, too much can cause liver and kidney failure and some health issues can be exasperated by garlic, so before using this method, be sure to talk to your vet to see if garlic can be safely added to your pet's diet.
As you can see, these blood-sucking pests aren't just a
nuisance but can be downright scary. We don't want our pets to miss out on
exercise, fresh air and all the joys of the outside, but a little diligence
will go a long way in preventing issues for you, your pet and your home.
