Last Week: HOW TO Pack a First Aid Kit
Until late last month, Jared Buker of Lincoln, Vermont, was the dog dad of two Shetland Sheepdogs. But when 6-year-old Ruby developed advanced kidney failure due to a severe case of Lyme disease, WCAX reported that Buker had to have her put to sleep.
Lyme disease affects both humans and animals (dogs are more susceptible than cats). According to the ASPCA, its primary carrier is the deer tick, which feeds on rodents in its early stages, and then transmits the bacteria causing Lyme disease by biting humans or animals. Although it was first diagnosed in a dog only 25 years ago, the disease has been around for at least 100 years: It was discovered in a DNA sample from a white-footed mouse from Massachusetts in 1894.
Unlike humans, who can begin getting a rash and flu-like symptoms almost immediately after being bitten by an infected tick, it can take dogs months to show any of the canine symptoms of Lyme disease, which makes it tricky to diagnose. Whereas humans typically get a round rash with the tick in the center, dogs do not. The first and most pronounced indication that your dog may have Lyme disease is lameness in his legs that shifts from one leg to the other, according to the Dog Health Handbook. (more…)
Buddy doesn’t get up as quickly as he once did. It takes him a little bit longer and he seems stiff. He limps for the first few steps before he gets going. He doesn’t run after the ball with as much energy as he used to and after a long walk he likes to lay down.
Larger breeds of dogs – as well as smaller ones like Pugs and 
November is 
