Lyme disease

[Shavings]

i know nothing about Lyme Disease and after a quick google i think i know even less!!


this all happened when a fellow livery said she got her horse from Ireland, another one then piped up saying "i wouldn't get a horse from Ireland Lyme disease is really high there and its hard to detect!"

1 what is lyme disease, is it killer? or can the horse live a happy health life with the right care?

2 is it hard to detect?

3 is it really high in Ireland?


did try to post this last night but kept getting "bad gateway" :/

 

[be positive]

I have never heard that it is a problem in Ireland any more than it is elsewhere, it is not really a common disease, it can be treated, should not be fatal, is not easy to recognise but can be diagnosed by blood tests, it certainly would not be a good enough reason to avoid buying from Ireland even if it is more common over there, there are many issues a horse can have and this would be one of the more minor issues in my mind.
A friends mare had it and made a full recovery, she is not from Ireland.

 

[Sussexbythesea]

I hear a lot about it from my sister as it’s endemic in Virginia where she lives and you have to constantly check yourselves and your animals for ticks.

I think it is probably under diagnosed in the UK because it’s not routinely considered as an issue. It is treatable but only really if it’s accurately diagnosed. My sister has had her horses treated at various times for it and she does believe her Connie was permanently adversely affected causing repeated laminitis despite any strict management used.

I wouldn’t let it put me off buying an Irish Horse though it’s much more prevalent in the rest of Europe.

http://www.bellequine.co.uk/downloads/286-292_eve_08-004_divers.pdf

 

[The Fuzzy Furry]

FLF had it, got from an infected tick.
She was very ill in Oct 16, rallied with good drugs that were got in by her owners vets, after Xmas she was just about back to normal and accepted back into the herd. Vet did warn to not cause stress as that can trigger off symptoms again, sadly this did happen in the May last year and she was PTS as owner said it just wasn't fair to the mare. Yes, it can kill, but the symptoms are more likely to.
Yes, treatment works, but if horse or pony has an immune issue down the line, or high level of stress, this can trigger it off again.

This is in NW Surrey, prevalent for deer areas, ticks a plenty!

I think someone's trying to pull a fast one Shavings, never heard of it being prevalent in Ireland (And have discussed this with my lovely Irish vet).

Local vets will routinely check bloods here if there is even a mild thought of it, as there have been a number of equine Lymes diagnosis in 15, 16 and a few last year, all centred within a 20 mile area.