9 week old puppy with Giardia

[David and Franklin]

This is an updated cross post from puppy madness. Franklin has Giardia. I saw signs of trouble (bloody fecal discharge) on his first day home (Saturday) and got him to the vet the following Monday. The vet told me that it is treatable and not cause for undue alarm. This was a relief to me because I had already bonded with him and did not want to send him back to the breeder.

We put him on a 5 day regimen of antibiotics (panacur) and he has 2 days to go. Franklin still has a good appetite and pretty good energy; maybe a little tired last night, but I he seems to have trouble eliminating. Decreasing amounts of blood in stool.

I am cleaning all stool in the yard by scooping it in a bag along with surrounding pine needles. No doubt I may be missing trace amounts of runny drainage.

I have been serving him boiled chicken (1/2 cup) , pumpkin paste (one rounded teaspoon) and about a quarter cup of the breeder recommended kibble, Diamond Natural small breed puppy twice a day, consistent with the breeder's feeding schedule. He has had no other treats, and I have learned that his chewing on fern leaves and laurel bushes is to be discouraged.

I had Giardia when I was a young man. It was not much fun, and hard to shake. Do any of you have any experience to offer?

Thanks to all the kind folks in PuppyMadness!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

The problem with "trace amounts of runny drainage" is that unless you disinfect all areas that have been touched by the fecal matter, he may reinfect himself. You really need to use bleach on anything the poop has touched, and yes it will kill the grass. Giardia cysts can live in soil for a long, long time. You also need to clean him carefully after each poop. His bedding and anything else that may have come in contact with poop have to be washed or disinfected as well. 

You absolutely must supervise him in the yard every single minute he's out there, so that he isn't chewing on any kind of leaves or anything else. Being with him will also give you the opportunity to "catch" that poop on a paper plate so that it doesn't contaminate the ground.

You may not be feeding him enough. Growing puppies need a lot of calories, and the homemade food has only half the calories of most kibbles. You'll need to increase the feeding amounts. This may be one reason he's having trouble eliminating. What does he weigh? 

Young puppies should also be fed three times a day for the first few months. 

Panacur is a very benign drug and the best treatment for giardia, so the good news is that you have a very good vet.

Some probiotics would help a lot. Order Proviable DC capsules and give him a couple of tablespoons of plain, unflavored nonfat yogurt with his meals in the meantime. You want to give the probiotics or yogurt at least 2 hours apart from any meds. 

Hope this helps. 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I am not a member of the Puppy Madness group, but I noticed that people were asking about the effectiveness of Panacur versus the dreaded metronidazole. You may want to post this link in your discussion there to provide the info for others:

http://www.vetmed.wisc.edu/pbs/zoonoses/gik9fel/giardia.html

From the article:

• Metronidazole (e.g., Flagyl) can be used in both dogs and cats (not in pregnant animals).
• Albendazole (e.g., Valbazen) was recently found to be quite effective in dogs, and may be more efficacious than metronidazole in stopping the shedding of cysts. However, both metronidazole and albendazole have been associated with significant adverse reactions in dogs and cats:
  • Albendazole: leukopenia +/- anemia and thrombocytopenia; anorexia, lethargy; CNS signs; vomiting and diarrhea; salivation; elevated hepatic and pancreatic enzyme levels; abortion and teratogenicity
  • Metronidazole: vomiting; CNS signs
• Fenbendazole (e.g., Panacur® or Drontal-Plus®) now appears to be the drug of choice. Used in dogs and cats at 50 mg/kg for 3 (-5) days, fenbendazole has been shown to be completely effective in eliminating experimental Giardia infections, and with only mild vomiting/diarrhea as potential side effects.

[Linda, Charlie Brown and Beau]

Hi David ~ regarding using bleach to disinfect yard - my vet said to use 1 cup of bleach (like Clorox) to 1 gallon of water.  When Beau came home with giardia, he was on panacur.  I used a clean gallon milk container and the Clorox/water mixture ready to go when I went out with him.  As long as you soak the area where he goes, it should do the trick. O had an older doodle and he never got giardia thank goodness.  This mixture It is not harmful to the lawn.  I would not use straight bleach.  Karen gave you great advice regarding supervising him when he is out in the yard etc. 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Good advice. I had a foster with giardia. and my vet told me to use one part bleach to 10 parts water, I used a fertilizer spray bottle attached to the garden hose. JD did not get giardia. :) 

[David and Franklin]

Thanks. I started using the bleach today, but a much stronger dilution. I have it in a spray bottle, he poops, I scoop (this occurs on a bed of pine needles) and the I spray. I will dilute it down to 1:10.

I tried the paper plate quarters and he moves away when I place them in position, so that is not likely to work. I have misted all areas where he has pooped, but I fear that I have a week's worth of active cysts out there. Franklin likes to crawl in small spaces and discovered the joy of going under our Mountain Laurel today. This might make the task more difficult if he decides to start pooping under there.

Today I was at the pet store and spoke to the owner about Giardia. She explained that she would scoop and then water the area to "wash the cysts into the ground." She said her dog kept getting reinfected; eventually overcoming after months or years. I didn't want to play know it all and explain that the cysts thrive in water and so her dog was likely getting reinfected because of yard sanitation. Anyway, the thought of dealing with this issue for months or longer scared me into action. I plan to go mideval on those cysts! The quality of advice that has been offered on this site has been wonderful. I will be posting updates of course.