A: Lyme disease was first reported as a dermatologic lesion in humans in the late 1800s in a Scandinavian medical journal. The Lyme arthritis outbreak in Old Lyme, Connecticut that put Lyme disease on the cover of Time Magazine occurred in 1975. The first cases of canine Lyme were recognized in the 1980s.
Source: Steven A Levy, VMD. Read here about Lyme disease in dogs in Dr. Steve Levy’s guest column.