Should my dog get the Lyme vaccine to protect against disease?

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! There are a couple of drug companies that make a Lyme vaccine. Some are better than others. None are 100% protective. The Merek NOBIVAV is a good vaccine about 80% effective compared to other companies. Each company is labeled a bit differently for the youngest age to start the vaccine series, I usually recommend 12 weeks or older. I recommend the Lyme vaccine with a good oral tick preventative in Lyme endemic areas Hope this helps!

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Roxi. Lyme disease is extremely common in the northeast and upper midwest regions of the United States. Every year the distribution of disease seems to spread to include new areas. So depending on your region of the country, it is a true threat. It is spread by ticks. So if you live in an area with a high incidence of disease, you will want to vaccinate your dog as well as keeping her on year long flea and tick prevention. I hope this information helps!

The tick prevention will help to prevent a tick from latching on and transmitting lyme disease. Most preventatives are about 98% effective so some ticks will still latch on. Treatment for lyme disease is antibiotics for 4-6 weeks usually. If you are in a high Lyme area, I recommend to talk with your veterinarian about the Lyme vaccine which is better than him getting the disease. https://www.petcoach.co/article/lyme-disease-borreliosis-in-dogs/ Please feel free to post any additional questions.

Congratulations on your new addition! In general, we are starting to see a large amount of Lepto in more urban areas because rats can carry Lepto, so I would suspect that the Lepto vaccination would be recommended for Maxi in Brooklyn. Lyme requires a tick bite. So for most dogs, I recommend tick prevention as a better option than Lyme vaccination because it will also protect again other diseases that ticks can carry. I am attaching a link to the American Animal Hospital Association's vaccine guideline below which includes a Lifestyle-Based Vaccine Calculator to help you determine which diseases Maxi may be at risk for to help you make the best decision. https://www.aaha.org/guidelines/canine_vaccination_guidelines/practice_vaccination.aspx Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using PetCoach.

No vaccine is 100% and there are other tick borne illness with similar symptoms that maybe transmitted to dogs. You can monitor for any joint pain, lethargy, or bruising on her skin. If that is noted then make an appointment to have her tested.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I call these vaccines "life style" vaccines, so it depends on what you plan on doing with Jax. If he will be outdoors a lot hiking, swimming, you live near wooded areas where ticks are prevalent or there is free standing water on your property then I recommend the vaccines. If Jax will barely be outside then his risk may be small. Leptospirosis is contracted from drinking water contaminate by wild animal urine that contains the bacteria. It makes the dog (and people) very sick by causing liver and kidney failure. I think it is a under diagnosed disease and is more prevalent than we think. I hope this helps!

I would not be overly concerned with one tick, especially if he had his vaccination. We can, however, depending on your geographical location have other diseases (such as rocky mountain spotted fever or anaplasmosis or ehrlichia. These aren't extremely common but are possible. If you notice any lethargy/decreased appetite or lameness in Champ then I would recommend bringing him in to the vet for an examination and letting them know about the tick exposure. I would also talk to your vet about starting a good tick preventative to prevent ticks in the future.