Lyme Disease Takes Our Lily
I was planning to write this last week, but I was too sad. Lily, my mom’s little Yorkie, who was only 8 years old, died on Sunday from kidney failure.
My mom always made sure the dogs had a good flea and tick preventative and Lily was usually an indoor dog, but she did run off a few times last summer and there are fields nearby. Still, it wasn’t very frequent and no one thought to test for Lyme’s when she seemed sore because we thought the bigger dogs stepped on her. When she acted lethargic and sick a few weeks ago, my mom took her to the vet, who drew blood and ran tests. She said Lily had kidney failure and one of the things that caused it was Lyme disease. She went back and ran a Lyme’s test and, sure enough, Lily had Lyme disease.
She gave her three days to live and said she didn’t seem in pain, so my mom went home with an IV bag, a broken heart and her little dog. Lily actually lived two more weeks because, despite her tiny size, she was a spunky, feisty creature. We all said goodbye, but we are so sad that she died so young.
Please, please don’t just depend on your expensive flea and tick preventative to keep your dog safe, even if it rarely leaves the house. The bigger dogs were vaccinated against Lyme disease, but no one thought to vaccinate a small dog who spent most of its time indoors.
We love you Lily.