It’s tick time

DEAR DR. JOHN >> The news has been pretty consistent lately in talking about tick diseases not just locally but across New England. We have our dog vaccinated every year for Lyme Disease but apparently there are some other diseases that ticks can carry and wonder if you can address these. I read about one newer disease that just seems to be emerging in Connecticut called Powassan. Is this something we should concern ourselves with near Boston? Which

ticks should we be most concerned with around here? We do use tick preventatives on our dog, especially in the summer months when there seems to be a higher risk of exposure. G.B.

DEAR G.B. >> The news has always covered tick borne diseases primarily because they can be so devastating to the animals or humans that contract these diseases. You are wise to vaccinate your dog and to also use preventatives to avoid ticks from transmitting anything detrimental to your dog. Readers should beware — I recently read about purchasing cheap medications online which could

be counterfeit or even dangerous. I suggest always working with your veterinarian and purchasing from or through them when it comes to these preventatives.

Your timing in writing about this is good in that May is Lyme Disease Awareness Month, April 30 was World Veterinary Day, and May 1-7 was National Pet Week! Different parts of the country have different tick issues. In the Northeast, Lyme Disease is most prevalent, but Massachusetts has the highest incidence of Anaplasmosis. Other diseases that ticks can carry include Ehrlichiosis, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fe