Lyme disease and dogs (long)

[Nurse1966]

Ok, so this isn't really a nursing post, but I figure we're all pretty smart folks here, so here goes! Does anyone have any experience with lymes and dogs?

My french bulldog has had anorexia, lethargy, non-specific type pain (such as with petting), and acute joint pain. He's been to the vet three times in the last week, and they can't seem to find a cause. They did general labs, BMP, CBC, renal and liver function tests and all were normal. He's also afebrile.

Tonight it occured to me he seems to have acute pain in different joints, and arthritis. Then it hit me...Lymes! So, does anyone know if he could have Lymes, with normal labs and be afebrile?

I'm not asking for medical advice, at least not for OUR type of patients! More like anyone's experiences with their dogs and lymes. I plan to try and beg the vet for some doxycycline in the morning. Thanks for taking the time to read this!

[LovebugLPN]

I was reading on other web sites (yes, I know "the internet") and it says that dogs can have false negatives. My dog had Lyme disease and it was not cheap to have it dx because they wanted to treat him for everything else but what was wrong. Good luck!

[gernikada]

Seems like my dog had Lyme too as he had similar symptoms as yours.He was put on Antibiotic therapy for a week (Doxycycline) & was back to his old antics after that.He is running and back to his feet again.

[rn/writer, RN]

Don't know about dogs, but in humans Lyme disease (named after Lyme, Connecticut, where a cluster of cases were identified in 1975) is a "rule-out" diagnosis in the early stages before enough antibodies exist to show up in blood tests. That makes it difficult and expensive to pinpoint.

I would imagine, too, that if dogs get the same bull's-eye rash that can show up in humans, it wouldn't be readily visible beneath their fur.

As the disease progresses, the symptoms become more specific and the antibodies should begin to appear in a titer.

The treatment for Lyme is antibiotics, some of which are reasonable in price. Maybe the vet would be willing to prescribe a course of abx and see if your dog improves?

I wish you and your pup the best.

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

our standard poodle had lyme's disease a few years ago. other labs were normal, but the blood test for lyme's was positive. she had a round of antibiotics and another blood test. still positive; still lethargic, fatigued, etc. so another round of antibiotics before she was pronounced healthy. i've been very careful ever since to keep my dogs current with their flea and tick medication!

[Nurse1966]

Thanks everyone for sharing your knowledge! We nurses are a very special group of people, aren't we? Lymes test came back neg. Vet's seem to live and die by their lab tests. Took him to another vet who actually listened to me. Did an xray and found he's got a hugely enlarged spleen. Tomorrow we go for an ultrasound and then from there...who knows? I'm hoping for infectious cause or auto-immune. Third possibility is hemangiosarcoma which is a very poor prognosis. It seems cancer spreads more rapidly in small dogs than humans. Thanks again!

[AlabamaBelle]

I'm glad you listened to your instincts and took your precious companion animal to another vet.

Yes, veterinarians do put a lot of stock in their lab tests and other diagnostic tools, just as our own physicians. Also, the vet's patient cannot talk for him/herself. The vet must rely on history from the owner (we as nurses also know that families are either great historians or less than honest - only a nurse would enjoy the outrageous tales a vet hears on a daily basis) and his/her skill at assessing what's going on has to be keen and get to the facts.

In case you haven't guessed, the DH is a veterinarian and a darn good one at that. When I'm asked for free vet advice, I use the same line that I use for free medical advice - outside my scope of practice - please see your doctor or veterinarian, as the case may be.

It pays to have a marvelous practitioner and a strong relationship with a veterinarian.