Giardia... how contagious?

[Gunnar's Dad]

Gunnar JUST had a clean bill of health and blood test last week from the vet.

His brother Tank went to the vet Saturday and blood tests came back positive for Giardia. No symptoms from either of them.

Gunnar spends weekdays playing in the house and yard with tank.

Do I REALLY need to pay for another vet visit and test if tank is medicated and gunner shows no symptoms? Or can I just watch him close? If so, what should I watch for?

[Lori, Daphne, Lucy & Pippa]

It is my understanding that it is very contagious and you need to make sure to clean up after Tank as soon as he goes. Take care to keep Gunnar away from the area. I know that Karen (the food group) knows much more about this and Im hoping she may post with more info for you.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

It is pretty contagious.  Everywhere Tank poos, needs to be cleaned immediately with a bleach solution and his butt needs to be wiped after each poo (not with bleach of course).  I'd also wipe both boys feet.  Wash all bedding in hot water.  I'd be tempted to ask for a 3 day dose of Panecur for Gunner if you think he's been exposed.  It is easier to treat them both at the same time.  That being said, we have had 2 dogs diagnosed with Giardia and the other dogs sharing the house didn't get it. The same pretty much can't be said for Bordatella.  One dog gets it, so do the others....

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Giardia is extremely contagious, and it has a 10-14 day incubation period, so even if you had him tested, it wouldn;t show up yet. Meanwhile, if he does have it, he's contaminating the yard and any thing else that his poop touches.

I second Nancy's advice to ask the vet for three days of Panacur. It's very safe and has very few side effects. I had a foster here years ago with giardia, which wasn't discovered until he'd been here 2 or 3 days, and my vet gave Jack a 3 day course of Panacur as a precaution, even though he never showed any symptoms or tested positive for it.

And Nancy is correct about what you need to do to prevent Tank from contaminating your yard and home.  

[Nancy & Echo]

While all this is fine and good for indoor contamination, per the CDC,  bleach, etc won't remove Giardia from the soil (ground) or grass areas.

How do I reduce the amount of Giardia in my yard or outdoor environment? collapsed

Giardia is hard to completely eliminate from the environment, but there are things you can do to help decrease the risk of pet reinfection and of human infection. Please remember that despite your best efforts to clean the environment, Giardia can persist in outdoor spaces and pet reinfection is possible ⁴.

• Wear gloves when handling feces.
• Remove feces promptly ⁴ and put them in a plastic bag.
• Limit access to common outdoor spaces, where possible, if pets have diarrhea or are being treated for Giardia.
• Eliminate any source of standing water (for example, puddles, containers with water, and fountains that are not in use).
• Do not attempt to use bleach or QATS in your soil or grass area, as they will be ineffective.
• Do not allow any new animals, especially young ones, to enter the yard or other outdoor space until advised by your veterinarian.

https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/giardia/prevention-control-pets.html

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

It says to use bleach on hard surfaces, I choose to describe my yard as a hard surface. :-}

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

My vet told me to spray the areas in the yard where the dog had pooped with a solution of 9 parts water and one part bleach, even on the grass and soil. 

[Nancy & Echo]

Of course, everyone will follow their own notions about this, and provide their own experts to support their opinion. It is notoriously difficult to challenge beliefs (including my own.)

Sodium hypochlorite (the active ingredient in bleach) is effective in killing some types of fungal spores and bacteria. It penetrates clinging soil and plant material very poorly. It is effective only as a surface disinfectant, so containers, tools, etc. must be free of soil and plant material and clean before treatment. Sodium hypochlorite is generally used as a surface disinfectant at 0.5%.

http://ipm.ucanr.edu/PMG/r280190211.html  (emphasis mine)

[Adina P]

I think I would feel better cleaning the surface of the grass/soil...KNOWING that it won't penetrate or kill anything beyond the microscopic surface.  I suppose if all poo is immediately picked up and then the area spayed, maybe some will be killed?  Is that totally wishful thinking?

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Not wishful thinking, according to my vet. And if the poop is picked up immediately, nothing gets below the surface anyway. 

[Nancy & Echo]

How long does Giardia survive in the environment? collapsed

• In the soil ^8,9
  • In cold temperatures (around 4°C/39.2°F), Giardia can survive for approximately 7 weeks (49 days).
  • At room temperature (around 25°C/77°F), Giardia can survive for approximately 1 week (7 days).
• Dry vs. moist surface or environment
  • In a dry, warm environment that experiences direct sunlight, Giardia can survive for only a few days ^8,9.
  • In a moist, cool environment, Giardia can survive for up to several weeks.
• Water ¹⁰
  • In water temperatures below 10°C/50°F (for example, lake water or puddle water during the winter, refrigerated water), Giardia can survive for 1–3 months.
  • In water temperatures above 10°C/50°F (for example, river water during the fall, tap water, and puddles during the summer), Giardia can survive for less time than in colder temperatures. For example, in water above 37°C/98.6°F, Giardia can survive less than 4 days.

  How often and for how long should I clean and disinfect my home after my dog or cat is diagnosed with Giardia infection? collapsed

  • Clean and disinfect potentially contaminated items (toys, water bowls and food bowls, pet bedding, floors, dog crates, linens, towels, litter box, etc.) regularly for as long as your pet is sick.
  • If your pet is taking medication, clean and disinfect frequently (daily if possible) until a few days after the last dose of medication is given.
  • Giardia survival depends on many factors, so we recommend that you consult your veterinarian for further advice.

  How do I prevent my dog or cat from getting re-infected, or sickening my other pets, during treatment? collapsed

  • If you have other dogs or cats, make sure you tell your veterinarian even if they are not showing signs of diarrhea. Other pets may also be put on medicine depending on the situation. Even animals showing no signs of Giardia infection could be infected and shedding Giardia into the environment ⁴.
  • Bathe all household pets with pet shampoo following medical treatment to ensure no fecal residue is in the pet’s coat ¹¹.
  • Clean dogs’ and cats’ environment, as described above, ¹¹ (holding areas, floors, crate, etc.) and wash water bowls daily with soap and water.
  • Limit your dog’s access to untreated surface water (creeks, ponds, lakes) to avoid re-infecting your animal and contaminating the water which could make other animals sick.

   

https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/giardia/prevention-control-pets.html

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I wonder if there is any updated or new information on the survival times, since the info about water survival in the CDC article is almost 30 years old. 

[Nancy & Echo]

I'm not sure how old the ORIGINAL research is, but here are some more recent sources. This from Iowa State in 2012.

Giardia cysts can survive for long periods in the

environment under cool, moist conditions. They are

susceptible to desiccation and direct sunlight, and are

destroyed more quickly under hot and dry conditions. In

various experiments, cyst were shown to survive in tap or

lake water for approximately two months at 0-8°C , in tap water for 2 weeks at 20-28°C; and in lake water for 1 month at 17-20°C. Cysts remained viable in river water for nearly 3 months at 0-4°C, and 1 month at 20-28°C, while they survived in seawater for more than 2 months at 4°C. In soil held at 4°C, almost 90% of cysts were still viable after 49

days; however, infectivity was lost within 7 days at 25°C.

Cysts also survived for one week in solid cattle manure at

4ºC, and for as long as 18 days in human feces.  http://www.cfsph.iastate.edu/Factsheets/pdfs/giardiasis.pdf