Parvo Puppy

This morning we had a yellow lab puppy in isolation because he was Parvo positive.

Parvo is a contagious virus that spreads through dog feces.  Although it can affect dogs of all ages, parvo usually affects puppies who do not have the antibodies to fight off the virus or are old enough to get the vaccine against it.  The most common symptoms of Parvo are lethargy, high fevers, vomiting, diarrhea, and in rarer and more serious cases, it can cause respiratory and cardiovascular failure.  One of the most common ways of detecting whether or not your dog has Parvo is by the smell of his feces.

Once the Parvovirus is ingested into the puppy's system, the virus settles into the lymphatic system where it can replicate and grow.  Soon after, the bloodstream is infected and the virus begins its journey through the body, attacking the bone marrow, the lymphatic cells, and the intestines.  The attack on the intestines is extremely serious because it affects the dog's digestion.  Necrosis of the intestinal lining begins to occur and the bacteria contained within the intestines is released into the body.  The white blood cell count goes down and eventually, if not treated immediately, can lead to death.

To treat this puppy, we gave him a blood plasma transfusion from a dog who has already survived the Parvo virus.  This blood plasma transfusion is beneficial for the puppy because it contains antibodies against the virus.  He was also on IV fluids to keep him from getting dehydrated or malnourished.  Because this virus causes puppies to become extremely nauseous, we also injected him with an anti-nausea medication to prevent him from losing any more fluids from vomiting. He was kept in isolation for four days before being sent home.  His owners were given very strict instructions about keeping him away from other dogs.  This puppy could remain contagious for up to three weeks!

So if you have a puppy and want to keep them safe from the Parvovirus, the best thing to do is to get the vaccinations.  Vaccinations should be given right after the puppy has been weaned off of their mother's breast milk (which does contain the antibodies against Parvo) at around 6-8 weeks.  The first shot is followed by a series of several booster shots and then are given annually after the first few years of the dog's life.