Threat of Parvo Closes Local Dog Parks

Last night on the news was an entirely too short of a clip about a nearby city closing its dog parks because of a recent spike in parvo virus. For those of us with dogs—who happened to watch the news—this was a high alert. I recall last year in Baja, the family from whom we rented our house, nearly lost their dog to parvo. Luckily it recovered. However, that didn't stop me from bleaching the tile floors after they left (sans dog) from visiting us. Parvo can be found in the ground, on shoes and on the clothes of owners. The virus can survive not just days, but up to two years in favorable conditions. I didn't want Bella near it, despite the fact she's had her shots.

The city earns my applauds for being proactive and closing their dog parks. It seems vets were aware of this recent local uptick and unconfirmed reports had been linked to the parks. Parvo is shed via a dog's bowel movement and can still be present two to three weeks post exposure.  Just because you dog is vaccinated, doesn't mean he is completely off the hook either. An article in Whole Dog Journal states that even vaccinated dogs may contract the disease, although this is not normal.

Unfortunately symptoms of a parvo infection begin no differently than a myriad of other dog ailments: vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy and loss of appetite.

PAWPRINT: This just in from Bella's vet:

We wanted to make sure all of our clients know that there is currently a community wide outbreak of Parvoviral Gastroenteritis/Parvovirus in dogs.  There has been a sharp increase in cases of Parvovirus in the past few weeks and an increase overall in 2012 compared to 2011.  

Puppies are most susceptible to Parvovirus and most die unless they are treated with aggressive medical care.  

With proper medical care, 90% of puppies (and almost all adult dogs) will survive, but treatment is costly ($2,000-$7,000) and many dogs require hospitalization in a 24 hour critical care hospital for 6-8 days.

We are especially concerned that several recent cases in our area have been in adult dogs and well vaccinated dogs.  (My emphasis.)

It is critical to ensure that your dog is current on his or her Parvovirus vaccination!  Parvovirus is part of the DHPP vaccine.  The DHPP vaccine should be given every 3-4 weeks to puppies until they are 16 weeks old, boosted 1 year later, and then boosted every 3 years (or less often if vaccine titers have been performed).  Please contact us to check on the status of your dog's DHPP vaccine and to discuss whether a booster or a vaccine titer may be indicated.  We are especially concerned about our dog patients who are less than 2 years of age, but all dogs may be vulnerable.  

Signs of Parvovirus include decreased appetite, decreased energy, vomiting, diarrhea, and bloody diarrhea.   

PAWPRINT 2: I stopped by the vet's today and she said the dogs that had contracted parvo were young, but not puppies, who had received their puppy shot and first booster. She didn't know why the uptick in parvo cases. I speculate here, but hope it isn't that there is a strain out there resistant to the vaccine!

Healthy Girl!

One healthy, happy girl-dog.

A quick note to say my B-girl is healthy again! I am thrilled—and I'm sure, so is she. Swelling was almost completely gone by early last week. (Only a mother would have noticed!) Her energy is back and this morning was the last of her mild-mannered diet. I had been working her kibble back in throughout the week. She's doing very, very well. Her latest stool sample came back clean, no coccidia and done without that suspect, face-swelling drug, Albon. Yahoo!

LA Votes for Rescued Dogs

I came across this article , (published 7:35 p.m., Thursday, November 1, 2012) in the San Francisco Chronicle. The Los Angeles city council recently voted to require pet stores to sell only rescued animals. It was a vote precipitated by the overpopulation and high euthanasia rate at local area shelters. A group called Best Friends has been working for the last couple of years with interested community and governmental figures to enact this. Yahoo LA!

The article states:

“More than 70,000 animals are euthanized in Los Angeles city and county shelters every year—at taxpayer expense,” said [Elizabeth] Oreck, [national manager of Best Friends puppy mill initiatives]. “To continue importing puppies and kittens from mills in other states while we are killing the surplus that are already filling our shelters simply doesn't make sense. Today, Los Angeles took a reasonable and progressive step to addressing these issues in our city.”

[T]he ordinance will not affect responsible, hobby breeders, who will remain a source of purebred animals for those who are not able to find the purebred of their choice through shelters, purebred rescue groups or online databases such as Petfinder.com.

“We are witnessing a cultural shift that comes from true grassroots advocacy in action. It is only a matter of time before there will be very few places where one will be able to walk into a pet store and purchase an animal from a puppy or kitten mill."

Another step forward for animals! The Best Friends website lists several different ways you can become involved (via donation, volunteering or taking political action) to make positive changes in your community.

It's Not Over Yet—Drugs, Drugs, Drugs

Bella was sick again last night. Needless to say, I feel helpless. I can't ask her what's wrong; what I am giving her (medications), I can only hope are aiding. The vet took her off the Albon for the coccidia. Some of its side effects are rashes and itching.

I spoke with the Saturday fill-in vet this morning and asked why I must continue giving her drugs for pancreatitis when coccidia was diagnosed. She was great. She said that though the blood test was negative for pancreatitis, it is not definitive; only an ultrasound would undeniably confirm...and of course we don't want to go that route at this point.

My question was why continue the pancreatitis drugs when we're discontinuing the drug for coccidia? Aren't we supposed to be concerned about the latter? The vet said if Bella's gut gets regulated, the coccidia will take care of itself. The Metronidazole is an antibacterial/antiprotozoal which will calm her stomach. Sucralfate is used to treat and prevent stomach problems caused by other drugs as well as irritations in the intestines and stomach. The Proviable is a probiotic that will help re-establish intestinal health. The Benadryl is to be given for one more day.

She's to continue with the I/D diet for two weeks. Poor girl...at least the facial swelling is diminishing.

Enough with the Vet!

No peace. While I'm shoveling pills down Bella's throat for a balanced, healthy gut, she pulls a winger on me. Somehow, somewhere on our walk today she was bitten/stung by an insect. It started around her eye. I noticed the tissue was swollen and she was itching, scratching, dragging her face across everything. It spread to her other eye, then down her muzzle and seemed to settle in her jowls or salivary glands. Now Bella has some pretty impressive jowls that produce, with little provocation, enormous amounts of drool. Those jowls are now huge, beefy and solid. She looks like Jabba the Hutt.

I gave her a couple of Benadryls to no affect and was concerned about the rapid inflammation. We are very lucky to a great 24-hour, emergency vet clinic (Acces) not too far away, so we trundled her up there. Because of the drugs she is taking for the parasites, they chose not to give her a steroid injection that would have sped the loss in swelling. None the less, they did inject her with Benadryl. Still, an healthy hour later, I see no relief. Her personality, however, is intact. The minute we got home, she got her ball and asked to play. A good sign.

Good Use of Facebook

A Facebook page has been set up for found and lost animals because of Hurricane Sandy. What a great resource for reconnecting! Remember to have a current picture of you with your pet(s) to authenticate ownership.