If your pet exhibits recurring arthritis, lameness, loss of appetite and depression, you might want to start paying attention - it could be suffering from Lyme disease.

Barbara Barsocchini, vice president of the California Lyme Disease Association, stated that rodents carrying the ticks that carry the disease could pass it on to cats and dogs, who could then transmit it to their owners. She found this out the hard way when she adopted a cat which carried Lyme disease-infected ticks. "I now have a chronic illness. I don't think I'll ever get rid of this," said the Malibu resident. Malibu, by the way, makes a good breeding ground for ticks because of its mixture of rural and urban landscapes. 

Dogs and cats with Lyme disease may show the following symptoms:

• Recurrent arthritis and lameness lasting for three to four days
• Loss of appetite
• Depression
• Reluctance to move
• Stiff and painful gait
• Swollen joints that are warm to the touch
• Pain in the legs or throughout the body
• Fever, fatigue and swollen lymph nodes