Rickettsial diseases including Rocky Mountain spotted fever and ehrlichiosis cause serious illness in dogs, requiring rapid diagnosis and treatment.
Rickettsial diseases cause severe, rapid illness. RMSF in particular can progress from fever to fatal hemorrhagic disease within days. The suffering involved - high fever, joint pain, vascular damage, and systemic collapse - is acute and severe. Early clinical suspicion and immediate treatment with doxycycline without waiting for confirmation is the welfare-positive approach. Prevention through effective tick control makes these diseases largely avoidable.