Chagas Disease - Please look

[Richard]

A few days ago one of my dogs was diagnosed with Chagas disease. I had never heard of it so I thought I'd post a warning in case others haven't heard of it either.

It is spread by the blood sucking kissing beetles (also called Assassin beetles). It is usually fatal for dogs and humans can get it also. It's usually thought of as a disease of central and south america and is probably under diagnosed here but some studies have found up to 30% of the beetles in our area are infected with the parasite.

The beetles are nocturnal. So if you see them around your house you may want to do some spraying and tell your kids not to mess with them.

Here's some pics of the evil beetles...




A baby one...



And the wiki link if you want to read more about the disease
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chagas_disease

[cpreefguy]

Wow, I'd never heard of that, thanks for posting.

[TexasTodd]

Hey Richard.

What is Chagas disease? I know those nasty bugs (down in C. America) can carry a super nasty parasite that attacks the heart! There is no cure and a transplant doesn't fix it as they're still in your system.

They bite around your mouth at night because they're attracted to the CO2, then they poop around where they eat. The bite doesn't transfer this parasite but people usually brush or scratch their face unknowingly and this transports the feces in to the bite spot and introduces the parasites.

Hopefully this is something other than Chagas!

I hope your dog's o.k.

Todd