A Deadly Dilemma…
It’s that time of year again, and paralysis ticks are hitting us hard. Below is the story of Harry – a beloved family member who was nearly lost to the ever present paralysis tick…
Harry Wawn is a particularly cute member of the Ku-Ring-Gai Veterinary Hospital family. An eight year old Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, it’s not hard for Harry to win hearts – but on the 22nd of September, we nearly lost this little man to a paralysis tick.
Harry’s family brought him in to see us because he was vomiting and they were worried it was because of a tick. They couldn’t find one but Harry had suffered from tick paralysis many times before and the Wawn family knew it was important to get him checked straight away. As Harry’s family discussed his treatment with Dr Jennifer Smith, Harry began to have extreme difficulty breathing and turned blue. Struggling for air, Harry had to be intubated (a tube is placed through the mouth, down the throat and into the airways, to keep them open) and placed on oxygen. It was a close call.
Dr Smith treated Harry with tick antiserum whilst a team of nurses searched him for the offending tick(s). Many patients have more than one tick, so repeated searches by multiple people are very important. Harry was clipped because of his long coat, which helped the team find not one but two tiny paralysis ticks.
There are many myths about tick paralysis. Harry is a perfect example of why such myths are completely false.
For example, have you ever heard people say:
- Animals get an “immunity” to ticks. If they’ve had one before, they’ll be alright if they get another one?
Harry had multiple ticks before, and this time was actually more severe than any other. To treat animals for ticks, the serum of another animals blood, specially formulated, is given into their vein to bind the toxin in their system. However, because this serum belongs to another animal, the recipient pet can have a immune reaction to it which can be fatal (just like with human organ recipients). The more times an animal has this serum, the more chance they have of reacting to it.
- It has to be an adult paralysis tick to cause a problem – a big, grey tick?
Harry’s ticks were tiny, black to brown paralysis ticks, which were nymphs. Paralysis ticks go through 3 lifestages (larvae, nymphs and adults), and can cause tick paralysis at any of these stages. Paralysis ticks have 8 red legs, towards the front half of their body, and a long red nose. If you aren’t sure if the tick you have removed is a paralysis tick, bring it and your pet, into us for identification.
- You’ve got plenty of time to get them to the vet. Watch them first. They might get over it?
No way! If you pull a tick off your pet and you notice they are a little “off-colour,” get them to a vet straight away. Tick paralysis patients can deteriorate very quickly. The night before his vet visit, Harry was a little lethargic and vomiting occasionally. The next morning, he could have died if it weren’t for the fast actions of the Ku-Ring-Gai Veterinary Hospital team and his cluey owners.
Harry is now back at home with his owners, safe and well. They are checking him daily for paralysis ticks, and have him on a reliable tick preventative. They are committed to keeping their little man around for a long time to come.