Dogs, Lyme Disease & Geocaching

Heads up to all of you that bring your dogs out caching with you....

Our dog was bitten by a tick last summer and this past friday was diagnosed as having a severe case of Lyme disease. There is no way to tell where she got it, but we're all out there in the woods together and Lyme disease is out there. I cannot begin to tell you how badly I feel for her, she is in a lot of pain and hopefully this will make a few of you at least aware of this fact and maybe prevent you and your dog from going through what we are right now. :( :( :( :( :(

I'm so sorry to hear of your dogs problem.. I've owned dogs all my life & they're my best friends so I know what you're going thru. I also spend a lot of time in the wilds..ie toolieweeds.. so it is a concern of mine as well. I get my girl "Friday" vetted twice a year & keep her on the heartworm+ repellant year round as well as a flea collar & if the "skeeters & blackflys" are bad I hit her with a light coat of a 20% DEET spray. When we return from an 'outing' she gets the bath (as do I) & I check her all over for any cooties that may have attached themselves (as do I).
Again.. I'm real sorry your pup got nailed with a tic. I wish you and your pup all the best..
Take care & best wishes.

..JW..

Thank you for sharing this as a lesson to us all, to be careful of ticks and the risks they pose. I've owned dogs (or they've owned me!) for my whole life as well, and I am sorry to hear that you and your dog are facing this.

Lyme disease sucks! I'm so sorry to hear your dog is having to go through this. Is she on antibiotics now? We were able to get a lyme vaccine for Moxie last year, and she's due for her booster soon. We have her on Frontline Plus and Heartguard as well.
Wishing you and your pup the best!

After my last pup had a severe case of Lymes, I had the REAL Quoddy given the vaccine as soon as he was old enough, and regular boosters too. Unfortunately that didn't help me when my Lymes went undiagnosed for a long time, and even after a long treatment I never really physically got back to my former self.

Yes, she's nearing the end of the first week on antibiotics and will need a booster shot soon, Oi! this sucks!

What are the symptoms of lyme disease in dogs?

Well this winter she started being really lame, especially after a walk or lots of play time so I took her to the vets after a return home one night and she couldn't stand up. I tell you what, that broke my heart! She's an American Bulldog and they are bred to withstand pain and take down bulls if asked to I knew she was hurting, also the breed is prone to hip displasia so I thought it might be that, the vet took an x-ray and said thet her hips looked great and said that she might have over done it and strained muscles. Gave her pain meds and we went home. Well, I took our Boxer puppy in for rabies and ended up taking the Bulldog in for a lyme test because the vet told me that they were seeing lots more of it so they took blood and tested it and it immediately came back positive. Now there is no way to tell where she got it since I take her almost everywhere I go and especially geocaching. She's now almost done her three week dose of antibiotics and will go back for a lyme booster on may 1st and hopefully that will put it into remission, (so I'm told) we'll see. I will say though I think she's feeling better from the antibiotics, not nearly as sore and lame. Since my dog was diagnosed, I've been telling other people I know about this and a friend of mine who owns two dogs went looking for them just to see, found 2 tick on 1 dog and 1 on the other, just sunday my sister found a tick on her dog as well. These are people right in this area!!! Hopefully they will be ok!

Just so no one really gets all alarmed about finding ticks on their animals though but not to downplay it there are a few kinds of ticks and only the deer tick is the one that carries Lyme disease. Most ticks that you will find on an animal are wood ticks and quite large. The deer tick is really small, about the size of a pin head. I think we had some good info posted in pur links section if you want to know more about the specifics regarding ticks.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Haffy6

Just so no one really gets all alarmed about finding ticks on their animals though but not to downplay it there are a few kinds of ticks and only the deer tick is the one that carries Lyme disease. Most ticks that you will find on an animal are wood ticks and quite large. The deer tick is really small, about the size of a pin head. I think we had some good info posted in pur links section if you want to know more about the specifics regarding ticks.

---

uhhh the link doesnt work to the lyme disease website...

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Haffy6

Most ticks that you will find on an animal are wood ticks and quite large. The deer tick is really small, about the size of a pin head.

---

Well, Haffy - it would be a LARGE pinhead! LOL! Actually about the size of the "e" in Bushwacker Level IV, above.. :D :D

I can speak from experience on this one as I found a tick on my arm last summer the size of a fleck of pepper. Under a magnifying glass it was an enlarged nymph tick. When sent to the State - they confirmed the tick had a 60% chance of carrying Lyme disease (the tests they have aren't very accurate- maybe due to the size of the insect they test). So I took a 2 week therapy of antibiotics (with very nasty digestive upset issues). My advice- use a repellant with DEET and lots of it, and use frontline faithfully on your animals.

frontline not K-9 advantix??

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by pjpreb

. . . My advice- use a repellant with DEET and lots of it, and use frontline faithfully on your animals.

---

Anyone remember the Ol' Woodsmen fly dope? Man, that stuff was good for combatting bugs. I used it many a time during the black fly season while working my way through college as a greenskeeper at a golf course. The stuff smelled like it was a combination of kerosene, creosote, pine tar and moose urine . . . I was none too pleasant to be around humans, but the bugs hated the stuff. I can't find it anywhere now though.

Hi FFJ,

I agree Old Woodsman's was the best bug dope for years. LLBeans I think was one of the last places to carry it. I remember one time I had spent about a week roughing it up in the White Mountains prospecting for minerals and was on my way home. My clothes were saturated with the stuff and I stopped by to see my grandmother on the way. My grandmother said "My God you wouldn't have to worry about bugs or anything else coming near you with THAT stuff on", LLBean's said they stopped selling it because it supposedly contained and ingrediant listed as cancer causing. I still have a bottle with a little left in it. Looked more like tobbaco juice but you never will forget the smell. I know an old logger,in his 90's now and he still has a recipe for making up his version of the stuff and turpentine is one of the ingrediants along with camphor and several other things. I'll stick with the 100 percent deet for now though. Keep on cachin.

Cliff

Wondering if Old Woodsman's Fly Dope was still available, I found it at this site.

They also sell Butterfly Pee. Sheesh! How the heck do you get a butterfly to pee in the bottle??? ;) ;)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by WhereRWe?

Wondering if Old Woodsman's Fly Dope was still available, I found it at this site.

---

Thanks for the link Bruce . . . I may have to order some.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Ye Olde Prospector

Hi FFJ,

. . .. LLBean's said they stopped selling it because it supposedly contained and ingrediant listed as cancer causing . . .

---

Doesn't everything we ingest, inject, absorb and inhale cause cancer these days . . . wait a few years though and supposed experts will find that the thing that is supposedly bad for you is now good for you and vice versa. :D :rolleyes:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by firefighterjake

Thanks for the link Bruce . . . I may have to order some.

---

What are you gonna do with butterfly pee? :confused: :confused:

Hi WRW,

That's good news, I know a lot of people that always used the stuff but haven,t been able to find it anywhere lately. Guess I'll have to check it out and see if it's still the real deal and not a watered down or tamed version. I still have part of an old bottle left for comparison. Thanks for the info.

Cliff

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by WhereRWe?

What are you gonna do with butterfly pee? :confused: :confused:

---

Use it as a lure to attract more butterflies. :D

Like those Deer fly hat stickers too. Know quite a few skidder drivers who used to take a fly strip and wrap it around an old ball cap to deal with those pests. Those deer flies draw blood when they are thick and it's not good to be swatting them while trying to drive the skidder.

Cliff

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Ye Olde Prospector

Like those Deer fly hat stickers too. Know quite a few skidder drivers who used to take a fly strip and wrap it around an old ball cap to deal with those pests. Those deer flies draw blood when they are thick and it's not good to be swatting them while trying to drive the skidder.

Cliff

---

They really work, too. Look terrible, but they work. :D :D

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by firefighterjake

Anyone remember the Ol' Woodsmen fly dope? Man, that stuff was good for combatting bugs. I used it many a time during the black fly season while working my way through college as a greenskeeper at a golf course. The stuff smelled like it was a combination of kerosene, creosote, pine tar and moose urine . . . I was none too pleasant to be around humans, but the bugs hated the stuff. I can't find it anywhere now though.

---

I got a few bottles when LL beans was selling it. Ol' Woodsman fly dope was and is the best. I spent many a spring/early summer wading alder chocked brooks in central and northern Maine in search of the elusive brook trout. I wouldn't have been able to tolerate it with todays "off" or any of the cheaper brands. Even 100% DEET you have to keep applying it every couple hours but Ol' Woodsman, you just slathered it on and it kinda stuck like honey, stayed potent all day (sometimes days) Great stuff, believe it or not, I love the smell of it but then again, I'm a trapper and we're used to all kinds of strange scents.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by WhereRWe?

Wondering if Old Woodsman's Fly Dope was still available, I found it at this site.

They also sell Butterfly Pee. Sheesh! How the heck do you get a butterfly to pee in the bottle??? ;) ;)

---

Cool, thanks for link Bruce!! and Butterfly pee is used to attract other Butterflys :D How they get it is anyone's guess :confused:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by WhereRWe?

Wondering if Old Woodsman's Fly Dope was still available, I found it at this site.

They also sell Butterfly Pee. Sheesh! How the heck do you get a butterfly to pee in the bottle??? ;) ;)

---

Great site!!! Thanks for posting it......I think butterfly pee sounds like a good substitute for Soy Sauce too.....LOL!!! Makes you wonder, not only do you not see many cats around a Chinese Food restaurant but when is the last time you saw a butterfly??????

We took Moxie in to the vet last night for her annual check-up and vaccinations. We asked what would be safe to use on her to repel mosquitos and blackflies, and she recommended Skintastic. :)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Smitty & Co.

I got a few bottles when LL beans was selling it. Ol' Woodsman fly dope was and is the best. I spent many a spring/early summer wading alder chocked brooks in central and northern Maine in search of the elusive brook trout. I wouldn't have been able to tolerate it with todays "off" or any of the cheaper brands. Even 100% DEET you have to keep applying it every couple hours but Ol' Woodsman, you just slathered it on and it kinda stuck like honey, stayed potent all day (sometimes days) Great stuff, believe it or not, I love the smell of it but then again, I'm a trapper and we're used to all kinds of strange scents.

---

Deepwoods Off . . . BAH . . . slather that on yourself and wander into the woods during blackfly season and all you're doing is marinating your skin for the blackfly buffet . . . might as well slather terriyaki sauce on yourself for all the good that will do. :D