Roxxie is a 7 month old rescued sweetheart. We met her when she came in for her first puppy vaccinations. Her tail is always wagging and we love seeing her sweet little face. Recently she came in to be spayed. Upon her pre examination before sedation, Dr. Buntain noticed that she was a little pale colored on her gums. Bloodwork revealed that she was anemic, meaning her red blood cell count was low. This usually makes them feel listless and weak. Roxxie didn’t seem to feel too bad on the outside. So, the next step was to test her for a tick borne disease. We ran a 4DX snap test that turned out positive for a blood parasite called Ehrlichia that is transmitted through ticks. Dr. Buntain told Roxxie’s parents that we would postpone her spay until she is done with her antibiotics and give her body time to regain red blood cells. Since her recheck visit she is recovering nicely and is scheduled to be spayed soon. A good reminder that it is a good idea to do pre-surgical labwork!