Sadly, once again Parvo is on my doorstep. A very good friend, and a huge supporter of animal welfare, has just had the worst 48 hours of her life with her new adopted dog being very sick and last night she got the diagnosis of PARVO !

This is a fully vaccinated 1 year old dog. Last year I found myself in a very similar situation with a friends Husky. She was a 1 year old FULLY VACCINATED dog and she picked up parvo at a public dog park.

In both cases the diagnosis of Parvo was slightly delayed. Why ? Because a 1 year old dog that has had at least two rounds of vaccinations (one from Initial puppy vaccines and one from annual renewal) is not instantly expected to have parvo.

So what is Parvo ?

Parvo in Dog’s is caused by the canine parvovirus. This virus is highly contagious and spreads through direct contact with an infected dog or by indirect contact with a contaminated object. Your Dog is exposed to the parvovirus every time he sniffs, licks, or eats infected poop or from the area infected poop was picked up from if it was not cleaned with the correct detergents.

Indirect transmission occurs when a person who has recently been exposed to an infected dog touches your puppy, or when a puppy encounters a contaminated object, like a food or water bowl, collars and leashes, and the hands and clothing of people who handle infected dogs.

What are the early signs of parvo ?

What are the first signs of parvo?

Some of the signs of parvovirus include lethargy; loss of appetite; abdominal pain and bloating; fever or low body temperature (hypothermia); vomiting; and severe, often bloody, diarrhea. Persistent vomiting and diarrhea can cause rapid dehydration, and damage to the intestines and immune system can cause septic shock.

If your dog has more than one of these symptoms then you should consider it might be Parvo ! Regardless of AGE and VACCINATION STATUS !

So as I mentioned earlier, I have been friends with two people whos dogs have contracted parvo in the last year and a half.

Back then, when Tequila the Husky had parvo, I conducted a study with some of the participating vet clinics and collated a document to see if there were any key indicators why pets were lacking protection. There was a common brand of Vaccine that came up in every case and mostly with the same batch number. Sadly this was not enough information to act as proof that it was a vaccine issue. Lots of speculation was made as to if this was a new strain of parvo (there are different strains just like human viruses), or was it an ineffective batch or a storage issue. There was just not enough information available to make a comprehensive study. The brand of vaccine is also the most popular and without comparison to other vaccines we can not give an accurate result.

There was also no evidence that it only affected puppies, there were just as many Dogs over 1 year of age with more than one vaccine that were getting parvo.

Parvo cases dies down slowly, as they usually do. My second home Boarding and Day care in DIP2, in conjunction with SABB (Small animal Blood Bank) pioneered a new procedure to check if dogs have immunity to parvo virus, rather than wait for them to contract it.

This quick test is now affectionately know as the Vacci Check shows the levels of protection the Dog has. Parvo can not be eradicated from the environment, the best we can do is make sure that the vaccine we use is giving the protection we are expecting.

By conducting this test, the My Second Home team have saved countless owners from having to endure the heartache of their pets contracting Parvo and countless pets from suffering the illness or even Dying. MY OWN DOGS INCLUDED !

Should I vacci check my dog if my daycare doesn’t require it ?

The short answer is YES ! Why wouldn’t you ? Your dog is not only at risk from the Day care or boarding, they are at risk from vet clinics, shops, walks, parks and basically anywhere they go where a dog that is parvo positive or still sheading parvo (they can shed the virus for up to 5 weeks after recovery) has been. Knowledge is power, if you know they are not covered you can get them re vaccinated and be sure they have immunity.

How long does it take for parvo symptoms to show ?

Parvo has an incubation period of 2 – 14 days. This might vary depending on the Dog but it is the best guideline. In most cases it is 3-7 days. So this means that where ever your dog has been over the last two weeks they could have picked up Parvo – Likewise they could have been shedding it for the same period of time and other dogs could be picking it up.

So if you dog was in a day care or boarding facility, please let them know so they can disinfect properly (this should be part of their daily routine anyway but a little extra precaution is never a bad thing) and any daycare that has had an active parvo case should be responsible to contact other owners and let them know especially if they do not insist on Vacci checks for their members because that means those dogs are all at risk.

If you went on walks there’s little you can do but perhaps post on your community page and advise people to get a vacci check to make sure their pups are covered just incase.

If you visited friends places or vet clinics you should also let them know to be fair to other owners who have young dogs so that they can sanitize correctly to avoid transmission.

BE RESPONSIBLE – ITS TAKES ALL OF US TO MAKE SURE OUR PETS ARE SAFE !

BENTLEY B’s Fight against Parvo !

So our lovely little Bentley (formally know as Biscuit), who is recently adopted, is currently fighting for his life. As he is a surrendered dog we have no idea about his previous health, however he was fully vaccinated but NOT vacci checked.

He spent his last two weeks at his home in Dammac hills and the last week in a Boarding Facility.

He came home from Boarding Friday evening and By Sunday he was violently sick. He was taken to the vets, he was treated for nausea and sent home for monitoring. The vet did not do a parvo test at this point as he is a 1 year old fully vaccinated dog who until this point has been very healthy. In Normal circumstances Parvo is not a concern for a dog in this situation.

48 hours passed and he was getting worse and still had not eaten but was drinking, his Mumma took him back to the vet and she suspected he had ingested a piece of plastic from a dog toy. All his symptoms were indicative of a foreign body in his tummy. This is another subject we will talk about soon. Again, why would Parvo be a concern in a fully vaccinated 1 year old dog.

He had an ultra sound and sedation and the results were normal but some fluid and mush in the intestines. So he was discharged for monitoring with medication to encourage him to eat !

Moments prior to him being picked up he had a bowel movement and this was a clear indication that Parvo was a concern. He now hit several of the key symptoms.

The prognosis of Bentley is unsure, currently he is doing better than he was last night but as we know Parvo is a very aggressive thing and its now up to the strength and will of the Dong to fight through it, there is NO CURE to parvo, just fight and strength and positive energy.

Please say a prayer and put out positive energy for Little Bentley B and for all other dogs that are currently suffering from Parvo – We can prevent this for affecting our dogs. Please do a Vacci Check for your dogs as soon as possible ! I’m about to repeat mine just to be sure they are safe.

Sending blessings and love to your all,

Trina xx

(owner of Hanz and Oley, Mumma to two dogs and step mum to countless stray cats in DIP2)