Lyme disease is under-reported in animals in Montana (and everywhere), as it is in people. But, interestingly enough dogs are routinely tested and treated in areas where people are not. Many people have treated their dog for Lyme disease where I live, which is why it catches many people off guard to hear that the CDC still claims that Lyme disease has not and cannot be contracted by humans here.
The number of reported cases each year in Montana on the CDC’s Lyme disease reporting table is no longer zero, but there is an asterisk and a note that all Montana cases were contracted elsewhere. This is primarily because current diagnosis guidelines (initially intended only for reporting purposes, but now erroneously used diagnostically) would preclude a patient who contracted Lyme here from being considered for potentially having Lyme disease in the first place (since they did not travel, which is poor logic that keeps any of us as from being documented as the “first” Montana-contracted case).
If you piece together information available from state and federal health agencies, you will read the claim that Montana does not have deer ticks (but wouldn’t you think they have supporting data to display?), followed by claims that only deer ticks transmit Lyme to humans (which is refuted by peer reviewed studies) and that the species of ticks that transmit Lyme to dogs can’t transmit Lyme to humans (which is not supported by fact and is also directly refuted by peer reviewed studies).
Even though drastically under-reported in dogs, as for people, hundreds of canine Lyme disease cases have been confirmed in my area (hard to say a number based on their key, and this is 2007 to present). The shaded area (Flathead County) on the map for my zip code (59912) includes the drainage where I was bitten (due east of the red pin on the map) and all of the districts I work on….so that my “office” for the past decade or so has been roughly half of this shaded area.
http://www.dogsandticks.com/diseases_in_your_area.php
I also stumbled across this article, about a dog recovering from Lyme in the town where I live.
Dog recovering from twin tick infections [in Columbia Falls, Montana]
Another data base with a somewhat better interface (also allows you to see sample size and positive cases by state and county):
http://www.capcvet.org/parasite-prevalence-maps/
Invisibly Lyme Montana 
This is Bullshit, a dangerous Coverup, causing long-term pain and suffering, disability and other!!! In May 2006, my two minor children in Eureka had tick bites, I witnessed the engorged 8-black legged tick fall out of my child’s hair, the bite under her hair behind her right ear, both, daughters w/ tick bites w/ CDC)-Lyme definitive rashes in the same week in repeated negligent, ignorant and incompetent Breeches of the (CDC) Standard of Care, followed by characteristic progressive “flu-like” symptoms, also complicated by Erhlichiosis and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever rashes/s/s and w/ potentially fatal complications, all misdiagnosed, left untreated, as “just a virus.” I am a licensed RN.
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In MT (5) Urgent Care and Emergency Room doctors w/ fever up to 105 w/ potentially fatal respiratory-cardiac arrest, seizures, severe head and body pain, gross eye hemorrhage, abdominal pain, nausea, projectile vomiting, jaundice, s/s/complications of meingo-encephalitis, vasculitis and hemorrhage from bacterial Borreliosis, Lyme disease, Erhlichiosis and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, “We don’t test for Lyme disease or any other tick born diseases in MT. These other tick born diseases are very rare here. This is just a virus.” MT DPHHS reports, “We do not have Lyme disease in MT. We do not test for Lyme disease in MT.”
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Such a dangerous and speculative stance for the state to take, based entirely on outdated assumptions about ticks. There is proof that more than deer ticks transmit lyme to humans and we aren’t looking hard enough to know with any degree of certainty the precise distribution of ANY species of tick. This has to stop. In addition to unnecessary suffering, this is undoubtedly costing our state considerable amounts of money (not being tracked or assessed) as people are unable to work or find care and steadily decline. I am not out of work by choice. I am out of work because I got bit by a tick at work at a job I love and have been sick ever since.
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With malicious retaliation, I, and my two minor children, the (3) of us patients of out of state doctors and referred specialists, suddenly, without prior notice or an opportunity to be heard, medically-kidnapped from our treating out of state (LADS.org) doctors and referred specialists, including medically-kidnapped from their referred and “warranted” evaluations for tick born ‘active’ encephalitis-encephalopathy at Columbia, an Adult and Pediatric Univ. Medical Center” as just recently diagnosed in me, and the most likely cause of my minor daughters disabilities. Medically documented, “both girls also most likely acquired ‘transplacental’ Lyme disease and co-infections from their infected birthmother during pregnancy. ” I was arrested and jailed for Munchasuen’s by proxy, denied rights of a fair and speedy trail, then further, w/ use of forced false-fabricated Munchausen’s by proxy, w/ double jeopardy, with “Blatant” “intentional” HIPAA violations w/ “intentional” Fraud and False Claims, w/ Extortion, “None of her own physical symptoms nor her two minor children’s physical symptoms have ever been substantiated by any physicians. She is gravely disabled. She requires solitary isolation Involuntary Commitment in The MT State Mental Hospital w/ use of forced IM psychotrophic drugging. She is gravely disabled.” “a victim of brutal, cruel, inhumane, ill-treatment, pain and suffering, personal bodily injury and excessive force, held hostage from my out of state specialists w/ human and civil rights abuses, w/ Conservatorship and Guardianship of my assets for (3) years in a divorce, in bad-faith, w/ prejudice, official misconduct, abuse of power and obstruction of justice, denied rights of my ‘choice’ of medical care and rights of “warranted” extensive medical care by my treating out of state specialists.
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I”m so sorry you have had to endure that. Even after a traumatic federal case of my own, I can not begin to imagine the horror of what you experienced.
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