Since sis is a medical doctor out in Montana I ran the question past her about what she would recommend as a treatment for Lyme.
"I've never used Cipro for Lyme. It's not the usual first step and has some nasty side effects, like tendon rupture."
The medical sites on the Internet do mention Amoxicillin and Doxycycline as treatments for Lyme. Reading in my book "Worst Pills Best Pills" also has a warning separate block in big black capital letters saying: "Increased risk of tendinitis and tendon rupture with all Fluoroquinolone antibiotics" and Ciprofloxacin is a Fluoroquinoline antibiotic. As a guy who has ruptured his Achilles tendon, you don't want that or take something that could contribute to it happening. With nothing too much better to do today I talked with the pharmacist while I was at the local Walmart and he did confirm that Cipro is cheaper than Doxycycline, but it is kind of a moot point if it isn't recommended for Lyme. I wouldn't care how much a pill cost if I could avoid getting Lyme. He said that "Amoxicillin won't touch it" and that Doxycycline is the first recommended treatment.
All deer ticks thankfully do not carry the Lyme virus because the tick needs an intermediate host which is usually a field mouse. Maybe keeping some of those feral cats or foxes around as mousers isn't such a bad idea after all.
Last edited by Windfall; 10/16/17.
