Tick found on Tiegan, advice for treatment?

[YellowLabProject]

I found a tick on Tiegan last night, she is 9.5 weeks now.
I HATE TICKS!!!!!!
I extracted it w/ tweezers, cleaned w/ alcohol and rubbed some
neosporin on the site last night. This morning I cleaned the area again
w/ antimicrobial, Chlorhexiderm and reapplied neosporin. I don't know
how long the tick was there, it was up under the ear flap and lodged pretty
hard. I think I got it all, I viewed it under a microscope and its
palps and hypostome look to be intact on the removed tick. However, her
skin looks to be discolored at the spot and gently squeezing the skin
between my thumb and forefinger I feel kind of like a scab. It feels
topical, not below the skin.

I called my vet for an appointment and waiting to hear. Anyone know
anything about this stuff?

I don't know if she is too young to titer, how long we should wait to see if she did contract anything from the tick or how to treat if she does test positive. Her temperature is good, 101.4 last night and 100.9 currently.
I have already had to treat her w/ antibiotics for her UTI at 7.5 weeks old. I am hoping to learn more about holistic and homeopathy care and treatments.

Thanks,

Doug

[jlab]

The vet will probably just test her for lyme antibody. If positive, they may suggest another more accurate test for confirmation.

The lyme tests just indicate exposure to the bacteria not the disease itself. For dogs with strong immune systems (e.g., raw fed dogs) and showing no symptoms of lyme disease, no treatment is required. However, just for peace of mind and because the treatment is so inexpensive, no side effects, and provides a 100% cure rate, many owners opt for the simple antibiotic treatment.

[YellowLabProject]

John,
What is your thoughts on antibody treatment vs. holistic or homeopathy? I don't know if there is any H/H treatments regarding antibiotics.... but looking to find out more about this.

Thanks,

Doug

[jlab]

I don't know of any holistic treatments either besides building a strong immune system to prevent any ticks in the first place or other preventatives.

Your first step is to get the preliminary test from the vet.

I don't think holistic treatments would have any advantages over the standard doxycycline treatment for lyme since doxycycline is highly effective and without any side effects.

The only disadvantage would be a potential antibiotic resistance through misuse.

[Fallriver]

Goodness, it's a tick, not a bomb!! Please listen to me: the visit to the vet for a puppy that age is more dangerous than the tick. The antibiotics for a puppy that age are more dangerous than the tick. I have pulled a hundred ticks off dogs in my lifetime and no Lyme. Lyme disease is a garbage pail diagnosis I feel and looks like it is the new thing to panic about.

When you pulled it off was it still moving? If so, you got the head. If not, the head is still imbedded in her and that is what is causing the discolouration and hardness. If you looked under the microscope, I assume you got it all so you are fine.

In all honesty, we need some perspective on this. If you feel the need to treat with antibiotics prophylactically, then you can get an herbal antibiotic from Ambertech (Vibactra Plus). I disagree that there are no side effects to antibiotics, especially in a young puppy with an immature immune system. Besides, wasn't she already on them for her UTI? You are flirting with demodex or worse with a second set, especially if you are vaccinating at the same time. Your puppy is trying to build an active immune system and if you destroy the good flora in the intestine with antibiotics, she will have trouble in doing so and will also have trouble with the vaccinations.

JMO but I would keep her home and not stress her out at this point.

[jlab]

I have pulled a hundred ticks off dogs in my lifetime

Dana - didn't you say that dogs with a strong immune system (i.e., FallRiver Labs) don't get parasites?

[ObedienceLabs4Me]

I would not worry at this point. I've pulled ticks off my dogs, too. Sometimes they're embedded sometimes walking around. I have noticed with Caleb, my first raw fed Lab, I have not found them embedded. Same with fleas--I find maybe one or two on him all year but no bites.

[Fallriver]

Dana - didn't you say that dogs with a strong immune system (i.e., FallRiver Labs) don't get parasites?

Hmmm, that's an over simplification.

I train dogs for other people in the field and so I have picked my share of ticks of them while we are out in the grasses. I have had the occasional tick on my own dogs but interestingly, only on the first generation raw dogs that were vaccinated. We had one strange season where I pulled probably 30 ticks just off my own dogs and that is really the only year I've had to do so, except for the occasional one. Interestingly, the no vax dogs have never picked one up although my research is hardly credible.

Having said that, a tick is very different from worms when we are talking about parasites. Worms are found in every single dog, ticks are not. Worms live and replicate inside the host, ticks don't. It isn't that healthy dogs don't have parasites: they don't have infestations. This is because their diet and and health is such that the worms are offered less opportunity to multiply.

Unlike worms, ticks live outside the host and are opportunists looking for a meal and a ride and then they drop off to the next animal. A healthy immune system will only go so far to prevent a hitch hiker from stopping in for a drink. What it will do is ensure the bacteria the tick leaves behind is dispatched quickly and effectively.

So a healthy immune system will prevent parasite infestation: not really applicable for ticks

[jlab]

Thanks Dana! 8) Any chance you would teach a class in holistic medicine to vets?

[YellowLabProject]

Thanks for everyone's advice.
Maybe I was over worried. But not knowing enough about how a tick can infect a dog, how long it takes, or how severe it is and what kind of tick Tiegan picked up I was worried. Maggie, just a couple of months prior to her deadly seizure had in fact had become infected by a tick and her titer levels were at a level 4. She was treated w/ an antibiotic and seemed to have reprieve. She suffered from high fever. So I did have a panic attack last night, especially w/ her developing immune system and as I wrote and Dana you did, had just been on an antibiotic. So I had a feeling that if I put her on another antibiotic so quickly that would not be good either and wanted to find out what options.
I did take her by my vet, but during the scheduling phone call for the appt. today, my vet told me we were not going to do anything, but look at her to see if the head of the tick was still embedded in her. That it would back out like a splinter, but she would look at her just for my piece of mind.

Any other info is appreciated, but I feel much better now. I did get the entire tick out.

Thanks....

Doug