# Lyme disease?



## chandasue (Jun 16, 2010)

I'm just curious if goats are effected by Lyme disease. Granted I haven't even googled goats and lyme disease but just got to wondering if it's something I should be concerned with since we live in a hotbed of deer ticks and a lot of dogs around here come down with it.


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## glenolam (Jun 17, 2010)

Not sure about the answer, but sounds like you need some guineas!  

Our chickens did an OK job at eating the ticks, but as soon as we got guineas our tick issue has gone down immensly!  I haven't even pulled one tick off our two dogs or two cats, and, to use as a guide, last year when our guineas were too young to free range we were pulling 6-8 ticks off each animal per week, sometimes per day!


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## chandasue (Jun 17, 2010)

My neighbors would shoot me if I had guineas! They are already just barely tolerant of my backyard antics... The chickens do a great job too but it's just such a dense area for lyme disease that I'm a bit worried about it. I did google it, and found that they can get it but I didn't find anything specific as to what the symptoms are in goats. Perhaps it's similar symptoms regardless of species.


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## chicken fruit (Jun 17, 2010)

I had wondered the same thing but never looked into it until recently.  yes, pets and livestock can and do get lymes. 


"2.15 Can pets get Lyme disease?

The Lyme Disease Foundation states that pets can get Lyme disease, and the
illness can affect individual pets quite differently. Some animals may
display few or no symptoms; others may develop fever, loss of appetite,
painful joints, lethargy, and vomiting. If left untreated, the spirochete
may damage the eyes, heart, kidneys, and nervous system. Lyme disease has
been diagnosed in dogs, cats, horses, *goats*, and cattle. Other species may
also be at risk. For more information, contact the Lyme Disease Foundation
(LDF) and request their free brochure titled, "Lyme Disease & Pets." Lyme
Disease Foundation, One Financial Plaza, Hartford, CT 06103, or 24-hour
Hotline: 1-800-886-LYME (5963), or E-mail: Lymefnd@aol.com"


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