# Lyme Treatment - 300mg Doxycycline / day?



## luvgolds (May 20, 2009)

Hi everyone - Buddy was just diagnosed with Lyme disease. I've been researching lyme threads on the forum the last 2 days, and have found a lot of great info (scary info at times, but I'm also pleased to read about the positive outcomes too)! 

It seems like the common theme is hit it hard and fast. My vet put Buddy on 3, 100mg tablets of Doxycycline a day for 30 days. Is this enough or should I be pushing for a higher dose? Buddy is 64 lbs (smaller male golden) and showed no symptoms. 

I did try some of the links provided in older threads to suggested dosings but the ones I tried no longer work.

Appreciate any advice anyone has!


----------



## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

My Tito is on doxy right now for Lyme as well. He's 67 pounds, and is also getting 300 mg/day (once per day), but he is getting it for 6 weeks.
He, too, had no symptoms.
I strongly suggest you have a urine test done if you haven't already. The greatest danger from Lyme is if it goes into their kidneys, where it can rapidly cause kidney failure.


----------



## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

Finn just took doxy for four weeks. He is 66 lbs and took 400mg per day. 10 mg/kg is usual here though. I think the 6 weeks is best.


----------



## Tahnee GR (Aug 26, 2006)

The dosage you are giving is not unusual, but the Tick List generally recommends 10 mg per pound, per day, so basically double what you are currently giving. That is the dosage I always give, although I usually have to buy extra doxy on my own, to supplement what the vet will give me.

I also give an eight week course of treatment, rather than six, but six weeks in an asymptomatic dog is probably enough. Lyme disease freaks me out, so when my guys have a C6 level that indicates treatment is needed, I hit it really hard. My dogs also tend to tolerate the doxy well, so I am lucky there too.

This is a very useful page, with lots of links:

Tick Links


----------



## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

Hey Linda, do you know where they came up with 10mg/pound? I've always seen 10 mg/kg, not per pound. 
I've also seen where, in humans, they are experimenting with using doxy and metronidazole at the same time, with really good results, but they haven't done it with dogs yet that I can find.



Tahnee GR said:


> The dosage you are giving is not unusual, but the Tick List generally recommends 10 mg per pound, per day, so basically double what you are currently giving. That is the dosage I always give, although I usually have to buy extra doxy on my own, to supplement what the vet will give me.
> 
> I also give an eight week course of treatment, rather than six, but six weeks in an asymptomatic dog is probably enough. Lyme disease freaks me out, so when my guys have a C6 level that indicates treatment is needed, I hit it really hard. My dogs also tend to tolerate the doxy well, so I am lucky there too.
> 
> ...


----------



## AmberSunrise (Apr 1, 2009)

My Casey went on this treatment several years ago with apparent success (his titers finally dropped, his kidney function values improved etc) - plain doxie was not working with him so he went on a fairly long metronidazole treatment; 8 weeks if I remember correctly.


----------



## Tahnee GR (Aug 26, 2006)

Tick-Borne Disease FAQ

Ann recommends 5 mg per pound, twice a day, which is 300 mg 2x daily for a 60 pound dog, for a total of 600 mg daily.

https://sites.google.com/site/tickbornediseaseindogs/treatment

"The dosage we recommend on Tick List is an aggressive one: 5 mg. of doxy per pound of body weight given every 12 hours for 8 weeks. For those who prefer to figure body weight in kilograms, this is approximately the same as 10 mg per kg, the difference being not enough to mention.

This is twice as high as the dose that is generally recommended - and here I should probably remind you that I am not a veterinarian or a medical professional. Well, that's true. At the same time, I should tell you that your vet is the one to decide what dosage to use. Well, I would concur if your vet is familar with tick-borne disease and knows it inside out. If not, he or she should consult with a colleague who is before deciding on the dosage. 

In my opinion and that of everyone on Tick List, to my knowledge, ehrlichiosis and Lyme must be hit hard the first time out, if at all possible, and lower doses and/or shorter treatment times all too often mean recurrence. Unless your dog is one of the few that cannot take doxycycline or take it in this higher dose, my best advice to you is to insist on it. In the experience of a great many of us on Tick-L, each time ehrlichiosis or Lyme recurs, it's harder to stop or contain it."

This dosage, 10 mg per pound, divided into 2 doses 12 hours apart, is supported by some vets, including Dr. Tom Beckett on the Tick List, and one of my vets (although in an asymptomatic dog she will only prescribe it for 4 weeks).


----------



## luvgolds (May 20, 2009)

Thanks for the advice, input and links! I'll check out that info. 

I was just at the vet this AM to take Buddy's urine sample, as well as to take Harley in for a lyme check. He was last checked in November and was clean, but will now be doing the checks every 6 mths for both. Good news on both fronts - Harley was clean; no lyme! Buddy's urine looked great - no issues with proteins (not sure I'm explaining that right, but regardless she said it was perfect!)! I talked to her about my concern for his kidney's and she suggested that it's no big deal if I'd like to test his urine every 3 mths or so, in addition to the lyme test every 6 mths just to ease my mind. I'll probably do that to make sure if his kidney's are impacted at all we catch it early. 

Unfortuantely I didn't see this before I went to the vet or I would have asked about the stronger dosage, but I'll give her a call to discuss. She's always been very open to discussing my concerns/ideas so I'll take this to her to see what she says. 

So far Buddy has no issues with the doxy and he's on it 3 full days now.


----------



## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

The tick diseases put such a damper on so many things our goldens love. I hate the little monsters!


----------



## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

Thanks Linda, that's really good to know.


----------



## luvgolds (May 20, 2009)

Buddy seems to be sleepy or lethargic since putting him on the doxy. Based on some research, doesn't seem like that's a potential side effect though. When outside he does want to play ball or frisbee and does bounce around like his regular self, but basically all he's done yesterday and today is sleep while inside. To the point where I walk in the room and he barely opens his eyes - he seems so sleepy!

I guess it could be the heat, too, here in the northeast. Yesterday it hit about 100 degrees out, and today is 90, but we do have AC in the house and I've only let him and Harley out for about 5-10 min/max at a time. 

I'm probably calling the vet tomorrow to talk about dose anyway, but thought I'd at least ask if others who had their doggies on doxy saw sleepiness as a side effect.


----------



## w00f (Nov 4, 2011)

Any lip licking or signs of digestive distress? 

It might be a Herxhiemer reaction to the die off of the lyme, it's so hard to tell sometimes.


----------



## Sally's Mom (Sep 20, 2010)

We dose it at 10 mg/kg/day.


----------



## MikaTallulah (Jul 19, 2006)

I had to take Doxy and it make me nauseous as all heck. All I wanted to do was sleep to get anyway from the nausea.


----------



## luvgolds (May 20, 2009)

w00f said:


> Any lip licking or signs of digestive distress?
> 
> It might be a Herxhiemer reaction to the die off of the lyme, it's so hard to tell sometimes.


No lip licking or bad digestive issues - but I did notice his bowel movements are less and firmer (sorry for the gross-ness). I did buy probiotics today to give to him 2hrs after his pills based on reading the advice/links from the forum.

I wondered if the sleepyness could be from his body fighting the lyme. I'll google Herxhiemer to see what that's all about.


----------



## hotel4dogs (Sep 29, 2008)

I don't think I saw any sleepiness, but I, too noticed smaller, firmer poops. 
I didn't think Tito showed any symptoms of Lyme, but after he'd been on the doxy for about 3-4 days I thought he was more energetic than he had been recently (I had blamed it on the heat, too) and I wondered if he was, in fact, slightly symptomatic.


----------



## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

Doxy is a condiment around here, and I've never seen sleepiness. It would concern me. Maybe take his temp?


----------



## WasChampionFan (Mar 31, 2012)

Listen to your Vet and don't let people scare you about Lyme. It needs to be treated but unless your dog has some other problem it will recover without an issue. Lyme in dogs is nothing compared to lyme in humans.

In fact, the vast majority of dogs fight it off with no treatment at all. 

Relax about it. I have even seen symptomatic dogs reverse in a few days of meds and totally fine after the full course.

Many Vets wouldn't even treat an asymptomatic dog.


----------



## Sally's Mom (Sep 20, 2010)

I have treated many dogs for Lyme. In fact, my Samantha had clinical Lyme disease (lameness) and responded to doxy at 10mg/kg/day. That was when she was 1 1/2 years old. She continued to test positive with the IDEXXtest for five more years. In between she became a CKC Ch, was AKC pointed, and had three litters. She was much more sick when she had another tick borne disease, anaplasmosis, at seven years. Her fever went to 104.9! I feared pyometra as she wasn't spayed yet. When an X-ray showed it wasn't Pyo, I figured out that it must be anaplasmosis. However, she was negative on the IDEXX 4DX test, but the organisms were seen in her white blood cells at Idexx. Again, she was treated with doxy at 10 mg/kg/day. She is ten years old now.


----------



## xtremeagbc (Jan 16, 2019)

*Double dose Doxy for Lyme*

Greetings - is this forum still live? I've been trying to research any data behind the double dose doxy recommended by Anne below - Any further recommendations or studies/websites anyone can point me too?


Anne




Tahnee GR said:


> Tick-Borne Disease FAQ
> 
> Ann recommends 5 mg per pound, twice a day, which is 300 mg 2x daily for a 60 pound dog, for a total of 600 mg daily.
> 
> ...


----------



## CAROLINA MOM (May 12, 2009)

xtremeagbc said:


> Greetings - is this forum still live? I've been trying to research any data behind the double dose doxy recommended by Anne below - Any further recommendations or studies/websites anyone can point me too?
> 
> 
> Anne


Yes it is, what is your Vet's recommendation or protocol?


----------

