Keeping Your Pets Safe This Summer
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What are the dangers lurking for our animal friends? Keeping your pets safe this summer t’s that time of year again veterinary hospital while in when the weather is college and currently spends a I warming up, the ground is lot of time caring for my thawing, and people and animals (exercising them, animals are emerging from checking for ticks and fleas, their winter hibernation to brushing their teeth, etc.). If enjoy the short months of you’re thinking “This lady is summer outside before it is nuts for doing all that for a time to hibernate all over dog or cat!” you would be By Rianna Malherbe, again. correct – they are my babies! MS, RM (NRCM) Around this time last year, we Blood Sucking discussed the risks Rianna Malherbe is an R&D summertime can pose to Microbiologist and Technical Arthropods Support Specialist at Hardy humans (Risks of Diagnostics. Summertime article from Just as with humans, Microbytes’ June 2014 She earned her Bachelor’s and mosquitos can also bite your Master’s Degrees at Cal Poly State edition). However, did you furry friends. However, the University, San Luis Obispo. Her know there are some strains of virus that cause studies were focused on molecular infections that animals are microbiology and genetics. Dengue Fever and West Nile more prone to in the summer Virus in humans are unable to When she is not assisting as well? If you have an animal infect our animal friends. customers at Hardy Diagnostics, that likes to be outside, you she can be found hiking the hills of Instead, dogs, cats, and ferrets San Luis Obispo County with her may already know about the can get heartworms from husband Ryan and dog Charlie. risks of common parasites these blood-sucking insects. lurking in the bushes. If not, don’t worry; I’ve summarized Hardy Diagnostics them for you below! As with my article last year, I need to disclose that I am not a Veterinarian, nor am I a Registered Veterinary Technician. I am a microbiologist and an animal Figure 1: Dog heart infected with lover who has worked at a heartworm, Dirofilaria immitis. Mosquitos are the Ticks, on the other hand, are floppy ears. Ear infections in intermediate host to the vectors for a few bacterial dogs are often caused by fungi parasitic worm, Dirofilaria infections we have in (e.g.: Malassezia immitis, which is transmitted common with our companion pachydermatis) and/or to animals through the bite of animals. bacteria (e.g.: Staphylococcus the mosquito. intermedius and Pseudomonas As in humans, Rocky aeruginosa). Mountain spotted fever, Lyme disease, and Erlichiosis are the most common tick-borne diseases in the United States. The organisms that cause infection and the species of ticks that act as vectors are generally the same for Figure 2: Dirofilaria immitis in a animals as they are for Figure 4: The yeast, Malassezia blood smear humans. Though you can read pachydermatis, is a common cause about them in last year’s of ear infections in dogs. Once in the bloodstream, article, I will reiterate the very With the drought and recent larva move to the heart, lungs, similar symptoms humans and floods many states are and surrounding blood vessels animals have when infected experiencing these days, where they reproduce. As they with these organisms: many streams and lakes are reproduce, adults get larger lethargy, depression, bruising, either drying up or spilling (up to 12 inches!) and, if left blood in the urine or stool, into neighboring lands and untreated, will cause severe and swelling in body sites leaving stagnant water pools lung disease, heart failure, and and/or lymph nodes. The that are wonderful breeding other organ damage. If you CDC, the AVMA, the grounds for mosquitos and can’t get rid of stagnant water ASPCA, and the Humane bacteria that can cause gastro where mosquitos breed, the Society of America are great FDA has some great intestinal infections. resources for tick prevention. recommendations for However, you will want to preventing and testing for Giardia, along with many other talk to your veterinarian for organisms, can cause watery heartworm on their website. the best preventive and diarrhea that can usually be treatment options for your pet. treated with a bland diet for a few days. If the diarrhea is severe, fluid replacement Water-woes therapy can help keep the animal hydrated. There are a few things to keep in mind when letting Buddy play in the water this summer. He can get ear infections, too! Though not always related to water, ear infections are very Figure 3: The female dog tick can lay about common in animals during the 4,000 eggs after dropping off its host. warm summer months, especially in those with However, Leptospirosis, caused humans and animals: heart and respiratory rates, by many Leptospira species, vomiting, diarrhea, and fever. weakness, and in bad cases, can cause permanent health collapse. A really well written problems or death if not treated Every year several corn-cob account of a case of onion quickly. Symptoms include husks and chicken bones are toxicity is linked here. fever, vomiting, removed from the intestines trembling/shaking, lethargy, of dogs. Corn cobs can get Theobromine, a anorexia, and tenderness of stuck in their small intestines, methylxanthine that is joints and muscles. If you and bones can get lodged in extremely toxic to dogs, is suspect your dog has their passageways or splinter found in chocolate. On a Leptospirosis, get him to a and cut their intestines. Some molecular level, it increases veterinarian right away - a pet other foods that your fur-ball- intracellular calcium, cAMP ER if need be - as the damage best friend should avoid, accumulation, and release of occurs quickly. There are vaccines for Leptospirosis that along with the toxic catecholamines. will protect your pet from compound they contain, are many common strains. The onions, chives, and garlic vaccines, however, do not (thiosulfate compounds), protect against all strains, so chocolate (theobromine and make sure to keep Fido from caffeine), avocados (persin), drinking out of small streams grapes and raisins (an as-of- and puddles on your hikes. yet unidentified compound in the skins), alcohol (they have a much lower tolerance than Backyard humans), and dairy (lactose – Dangers not all dogs and cats produce lactase). On a level that is more easily BBQs are the most recognized recognized by owners, staple of summertime in the Onions and garlic, when eaten theobromine (and caffeine) US. However, BBQs are also (raw or cooked), can cause stimulate the central nervous one of the most common serious problems in red blood system, cardiac, and skeletal places Fido will get him (or cells. The thiosulfate muscles; and induces smooth her)-self into trouble. If you compounds found in the flesh muscle relaxation. All of these are going to bring your furry of onions oxidize hemoglobin actions together can lead to companion with you to the and form clumps called Heinz increased muscle activity, party, make sure to keep these bodies within these cells. exaggerated responses to things in mind: Food Heinz bodies reduce the normal stimuli, and in the poisoning is not just a human amount of oxygen blood cells worst cases cardiac ailment. In general, animals can carry, resulting in an arrhythmias that can lead to have stronger stomachs than anemic animal. These Heinz death. The lethal dose (LD50) humans (they lick just about bodies can be seen under a for a dog is between 250-500 everything!). However, microscope when blood cells mg/kg, less than half the getting an infectious dose of are stained with New LD50 of humans (1000 Salmonella and Listeria Methylene Blue. Some of the mg/kg). However, toxicity in monocytogenes will cause symptoms of onion and garlic dogs can occur with as little very similar symptoms in both toxicity are lethargy, diarrhea, as 16mg/kg. This means that vomiting, pale gums, elevated my 40 pound mutt would start to feel the effects of causes irreversible damage you cannot force them to sit in theobromine poisoning at very quickly; within days the shade with you, ask your around 1oz and would be a depending on the amount they veterinarian about animal- goner if he ate 13.5 oz. ate. The sooner treatment is friendly sunscreens. Hot spots started, the better. are common during the Also, when visiting friends, summer months because make sure to ask the host if animal fur traps heat, sweat, they use any poisons in their General and bacteria close to the skin. yard (and keep your animal Concerns out of yours if you use them at Hot spots usually start out as home!). Fertilizers and Dehydration is extremely an itch but can lead to a pesticides are not designed to common during the summer vicious cycle of scratching or hurt your furry friend, but that months in both humans and chewing a specific area if the doesn’t mean they won’t. animals. Your pet relies on skin is broken or otherwise you to provide a cool place to irritated. In addition, the stay and enough water to warm and humid environment drink during the summer under the fur is the perfect months. If you don’t mind a breeding ground for bacterial muddy dog, a kiddie pool full and fungal infections of the of water is a cheap option to skin. keep them cool. Just make sure it is not deep enough for In general, a veterinarian will them to drown in, and you not wait to ID and perform may want to supervise their susceptibility on the causative use of the pool to ensure they organism and will likely start are safe.