Thread by @JT_EpiVet, I often get asked about #LymeDisease and #Dogs. Here are some thoughts [...]

John Tulloch

JT_EpiVet

I often get asked about #LymeDisease and #Dogs.
Here are some thoughts and useful things to read.

Firstly the ACVIM consensus:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5980284/

They conclude: 'It is not proven that European LB causes clinical signs in dogs '

Why?! As they discuss + so does Prof Leschnik in an editorial ( https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tvjl.2013.09.073)

'LB (in dogs) has only been associated with B. burgdorferi sensu stricto'

But what is the mix of borrelia in the UK?

In a Scottish study, BbSS only made up only 7% of the Lyme genospecies found ( https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2014.00129).
In a UK-wide study, BbSS was 25.5% of genospecies found
( https://doi.org/10.1111/mve.12257)

Prevalence and distribution of Borrelia and Babesia species in ticks feeding on dogs in the U.K.

In this study, ticks were collected from dogs by veterinarians participating in a U.K.‐wide tick surveillance programme. The ticks were subjected to polymerase chain reaction and sequence analysis...

https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2014.00129

So what?

As Prof Leschnik says

'There is an unproven assumption, derived from early studies, that canine LD is comparable to the human disease in all aspects of transmission and organ manifestations, but this is certainly not true.'

'Currently estimate that <5% of dogs with suspected LD really have disease due to B. burgdorferi'

This is a European perspective, where TBD diversity differs to that in USA

Conclusion: a tick bite reaction/local infection will pose a greater risk to your dog than Lyme disease.

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