Vet calls for routine tests for dogs to track Lyme disease
Blood test non-invasive, provides quick results
CBC News – Posted: Jan 23, 2014
A dog bravely endured Lyme disease testing earlier this month. (Courtesy Elisha Dickinson-Mills)
A Hampton-based veterinarian wants to see routine blood tests for dogs to keep track of Lyme disease in New Brunswick. Dr. Elisha Dickinson-Mills tested 55 dogs at her clinic on Jan. 11, as part of a research project being conducted by Mount Allison University to see how widespread the disease is. One of the dogs tested positive for antibodies to Borrelia, the bacteria that causes Lyme disease. Borrelia is commonly transmitted to both dogs and humans through tick bites.
“The expected results were within one to two per cent of a sample healthy population, so the results we received were what we expected,” said Dickinson-Mills.
“That shows that it exists in our area, that it is important to screen and detect.”