28/09/2026
We would like to share with you a feel-good story 🥹 about one of our lovely patients, Sophie - a 7 year-old greyhound who was rescued by her owner after she finished her racing career elsewhere.
We see so many rescue greyhounds at Port Douglas Vets and they all have one thing in common. They have so much love to give 🩶. They are some of the gentlest, most loving dogs we see. Literally all of them. Sophie is not an exception. We love seeing her in our clinic. All of her visits to this point have been for vaccines and checkups.
While she has been on tick prevention since finding her new home, her cover had only lapsed a couple of days when her owner noticed what appeared to be a tick on her neck while patting her.
She was brought in, and the tick was confirmed to be a PARALYSIS TICK. It was removed straight away.
Even though she wasn’t showing any signs yet, there is a lag period with tick toxin of 1-2 days and with the size of the tick, it had most likely been on for at least 24 hours.
We got straight to work getting her prepped to receive the anti-toxin, (it can cause an anaphylactic reaction when given, so other medications need to be administered beforehand to reduce the risk of this).
She then received the life saving anti-toxin intravenously over the next hour. (Due to our location in a paralysis tick hotspot, we always have a good supply of tick anti-serum on hand so we can promptly treat any tick cases we see).
She did deteriorate later that day, but this was expected. This is due to the lag period of the toxin binding to the tissue. The idea of the anti-toxin is that it binds and neutralises any unbound toxin, however it cannot do anything about the already bound toxin, the body has to excrete this itself.
Over the next 24 hours with supportive care and fluid therapy, she was well enough to go home.
Sophie’s case emphasises the importance of a solid tick protection regime, as even a few days lapsed is enough for a tick to take hold. We are always happy to consult on what tick prevention regime best suits your dog or cats situation to ensure that they don’t end up in a potentially life-threatening situation. ❤️🩹
