815. Follow up - The Cocker Spaniel that had tick fever

In Oct 2011, the Cocker Spaniel had pale gums. Tick fever was treated and the owner was most happy.
This case is reported in:
http://www.sinpets.com/dogs/20111039tick-fever-cocker-spaniel-singapore-toapayohvets.htm


On Jan 11, the owner messaged me to get her Cocker Spaniel vaccinated and checked. The Cocker wanted to bolt out of the door as she remembered me very well. It was great seeing a patient who had recovered from tick fever and put on weight.

She had put on weight and was very active. Her gums were pinker than normal. "It is best not to give too much liver," I advised. The dog had no fever. I took a blood test to review her health. Her owner did not bring any urine sample as she said: "Every time I tried to collect urine from her, she would stop peeing!"

The blood test revealed a low white cell count and very low platelet count. "Could it be the return of tick fever or a wrong blood sample being tested?" the owner asked me when I told her to stop using the tick wash and tick top up. The dog had a tick wash 2 days before as she still had small ticks.

"It is unlikely to be tick fever," I said. "The dog is eating well and is active. The lowered platelet count could be due to toxic blood. Your dog would have licked off the tick wash and ingested the poison over a period of time." The owner did not want a repeat blood sample so soon.

She sent in the urine sample for analysis. Results would be known tomorrow. With blood test, one assume that the dog is OK and keep giving tick washes (to prevent tick fever). The area where the dog exercises has ticks and that is why this dog has small ticks now and then. The owner is specially careful that she does not get tick fever again as it can be a killer.