Beware- Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever season is here (Houston, Tyler: house, live)

[EasilyAmused]

My dog was just diagnosed with RMSF. Yes, he's on Sentinel and Advantix and wears a Tick Collar. Apparently it's not enough when the ONE out of a million bites you.

The vet says it's on the rise in Texas. So dog owners and people beware. Check,soap and comb your dogs when they run in high grass and wooded areas. Spray yourself with Deep Woods like nobody's business.

I'm pretty sure it came from my place in East Texas, but apparently they are have problems with all tick diseases this year in Houston too.

[Spree]

I'm sorry to hear that. Will your dog be okay?

[EasilyAmused]

yeah. I suspected something was up because he was just acting "weird." So apparently we caught it in time.

It can be lethal if people aren't paying close attention

[love roses]

What are the symptoms? We were at my grandma's house in Tyler a few weeks ago and I found 2 ticks on my dog after we got back to Hutto. He had been having a blast running through the pastures and the woods at the rear of the property. I never found ticks on us. Can cats get it? He doesn't seem like anything is wrong and he's not "off" but our cat does seem a little off. Her nose feels a little dry but not hot.

[EasilyAmused]

He's a very active 4 year old dog that likes to "herd" bugs in the fields for hours so:

We hadn't been at the farm in over a week when I found a large tick on him, and pulled it out intact. Despite all the tick prevention he's on, it was still alive. Within two days of the tick find he started the symptoms

First he was acting stiff in the back legs and hips.
The next day he was still stiff and was growling at another person he knows very well. He's a very lovie/submissive dog. So this seemed odd.
Later that day he just felt warm and he didn't move all night.
So I took him in.

According to the vet sometimes symptoms don't show up for sometime. I'm just very lucky his showed up right away, which makes it easier to fight the virus.

Cat can get it. Humans as well

[love roses]

Thanks

[nmnita]

wow, that is scary, our little guy loves to wander into the forest and certainly we have lots of forest in NWA. He is on Tick and Flea meds, according to our vet, there is almost no way anything could happen, but we did find a couple of ticks on him a few weeks ago. I think we may have been a week late with his treatment. Anyway, he seems ok, just now I will be really worried.

Nita

[EasilyAmused]

I called Advantix I was so mad, and they said that it only reduces chances, it's not full proof.
ie. If your dog ran through a nest of them, 5% could still attach and not be killed


The suggestions I got were, if you have a long haired dog: Field clip them for the summer, brush and check them well when they come in and if you have time heavy soap and bath them. If there is a tick on them, removing them withing the first 5 hours will greatly reduce chance of infection. Also adding a tick collar with amitraz (sp?) in it will help as well.