Parvo at 10 months old

[Marie + Marshall]

Hello

I wasn't really sure where to post this as I am looking for different advice and mostly to share our story. Marshall became sick with vomiting and a little diarrhea on a Wednesday morning. By Thursday he seemed so sick and would not eat or drink. I took him in at 8am on a Thursday and we began the usual things you look for in a 10 month old puppy. So, he had blood work, xrays and thankfully an IV (since his wasn't drinking). I took him home with the usual meds and advice- He never took any meds that night (Thursday) and would still not eat or drink and very sleepy. I know this dog so well. I felt scared to death all Thursday night to the point of tears. Curious though there was no more vomit and very little diarrhea- no blood. I literally ran into the Vet at 8 am on Friday (with no call before hand)- freaking out- I said "I feel like I am losing him!" I left him there for more tests and IV and I had to go to work. They called me at 3pm that Friday to tell him he tested positive for Parvo and that they were shocked. I started crying and really almost passed out. We have always tired to take such good care of him. It was so shocking!! It turns out Marshall received ALL vaccines on the exact- correct time table and the last two parvos were with the same manufacturer. He spent 4 days (which I spent most of with him) in a very good hospital and I am happy to report, it has been two weeks and he seems to be healthy and back to his old self. We do have a claim in with the Vaccine Manufacturer and expect a check from them to cover some of the $3,500.00 cost- we also have a pet insurance policy- so hopefully all that will help. Why did this happen? We have been told multiple theories...from a lapse in the vaccine to a different strand? I really don't know. He wasn't any place in the two weeks before hand except for his Doggie Day Care a couple days a week. EVERYONE has been tested and checked and no other dogs have came up positive. He wasn't at a pet store or a dog park. So it will remain a mystery. But even if he was...he was suppose to be protected.

Finally my question. It was really awful to get him back to eating and drinking- he received the canned food the hospital gives for days and once home, we just continued on it and gradually added his Wellness grain free food back in and he got things like sweet potatoes and boiled chicken and so on. and he is on Proviable DC. But in the last day or two- with just his regular kibble- we have loose stools again. It is like going through the food change all over again. I am wondering is there a canned ID formula similar to what the hospital gives that is really any good? I feel like his tummy is a mess and I don't want him losing weight as he just started gaining it back.

Also, as you might imagine he is being kept at home and I not sure, I have the guts to ever take him anywhere again. I just want to say...if you do have a Puppy not fully vaccinated..BE CAREFUL. This was a horrible experience and at 10 months old - he almost didn't make it!!

Also, if there is anyone else out there that has had this same experience. Did you vaccinate for the Parvo again or just do the titer tests? Because, I am getting mixed theories on that as well.

Thanks for listening and any feed back you might have will be appreciated.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I am really sorry to hear all this. I have no idea why it happened, but I can help with the food. 

You really don't want a food similar to Hill's i/d, because it is a truly awful food, full of corn. But it's very high in insoluble fiber in the form of cellulose, which is why it helps firm stools. It's not unusual for dogs who have been on this food to have loose stool when they return to their normal diets. In the future, I would refuse the i/d and simply feed your own bland chicken & sweet potato diet. The Rx food contains no medicine or therapeutic ingredients at all, it's just a bland diet with a lot of fiber. And of course, any canned food or home-cooked diet is very high in water content and that helps with stool formation, too.

Wellness makes a canned LID formula, Simple Solutions, which might be a better choice for him right now. Try the Turkey formula. You can also buy some plain powdered psyllium (Konsyl is the brand name, but there are generic versions available that are less expensive) and add a teaspoon to the canned food at each meal. That may help. Or you can just feed plain boiled chicken and sweet potatoes for a while. If you choose the latter, you will need to feed about twice as many cups per day as you normally feed of kibble, as the homemade diet contains only about half the calories of the kibble. If you use the Wellness canned food, follow the manufacturer's feeding guidelines.

The Proviable will help, but it takes time for it to restore a good colony of beneficial bacteria in the gut. The meds he was on destroyed the good bacteria which is necessary for proper stool formation, which is part of the reason for the loose stool, too. 

Good luck, hope this helps. 

 

[Marie + Marshall]

Thanks Karen- I think, I may incorporate the Wellness canned versions you mentioned above. And I will try some of the psyllium (I have seen you mention before) I guess he can have that and the probiotic at the same time? 

By the way there was no refusing their food. He was in isolation with no fridge so they said they couldn't keep anything home made for him. And honestly he was on his death bed and they have a 90% survival rate where we placed him ....and My Hubby said- let them do their job. So the food thing became less important- as crazy as that might sound. But, I am back in mode now to do that best for him and his tummy. so THANK YOU for the advice. I will get online now and find it :)

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Probiotics and psyllium are fine at the same time. The psyllium is just soluble fiber.

In life and death circumstances, I agree that the food is unimportant. 

I originally mentioned Wellness canned Core formula, but I think their canned Simple Solutions would be a better choice right now. And it might be an easier transition back to kibble, too. 

[Marie + Marshall]

Thanks again

[Marie + Marshall]

Karen - one last question...would you be adding in any kibble? I mean we went full strength this weekend and it wasn't good. But with the canned simple solutions- would you still add some kibble? I mean this Doggie is going to get super spoiled in the food department with all this mess. Believe it or not he liked the darn food they sent home :(

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Of course he liked it. Don't most human kids (and many adults) like junk food, too? LOL

I'd stay with the canned food alone for a few days; once the stool seems good, you can start to add in some kibble. Continue the Proviable for a few weeks, even after things seem fine.

[Jarka, Monty & Auggie]

That's just crazy. So sorry you and your pup had to go through this! I'm so glad that you caught it so soon!

[Marie + Marshall]

Thank You

[Wendy and Myla]

Wow, what a scare!  I'm so glad that he's back to his old self!  I'm sure he's getting lots of hugs but give him an extra one from me!  So sad you both had to go through that!

[Marie + Marshall]

Thank You- I will :)

[Nancy & Echo]

I am so sorry you have had such a bad scare. 

I don't have any parvo virus experience - I have never even had a dog - but I can read Pubmed.

These Pubmed abstracts imply the canine parvo viruses seem to be evolving.  One abstract says there is a high degree of cross sensitivity between the parvo strains, but maybe your puppy got a parvo strain which was not cross-reactive.  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18437851 , http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16765539, http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21962408

From what I understand about vaccines, in general, there are few, if any, vaccines that are 100% effective (meaning absolutely every dog or human who is vaccinated is protected against the disease.)  That does not mean that you should not get parvo vaccines.   For some diseases, vaccination is our only tool against the disease. Sometimes diseases are prevented by 'herd immunity'. If enough dogs get a good antibody titer, you may get 'herd immunity'.   In this study of a canine parvo virus vaccine, none of the 20 vaccinated puppies died, but some of them did get some of the symptoms of parvo infection. http://www.jarvm.com/articles/Vol10Iss3/Vol10%20Iss3%20Ng.pdf

I am not a vet or really know that much about dog vaccines, particularly side effects.  I have heard that when they develop vaccines, it generally requires much less testing for animal vaccines than human vaccines.

Anyway, I'm so sorry you have gone through this terrible experience.  I'd be scared to death.

[Marie + Marshall]

This looks interesting- I will read the links tonight. The problem is new Doggie Owners are told over and over again to stay in (which we did) until after shots... but at 10 months- you think you are safe from Parvo and go out. But yes we were told that it does happen and no vaccine is 100%.. But just the mere fact that he was up to date- delayed the diagnoses and treatment. Because they look for other things when a Dog is up to date on shots. Thank God our Vet tested him on that Friday. Thank you for the time and kind words.