NEWS - Parvo: What is it and what can be done to avoid it? - Ridgefield Press, March 11

Parvo: What is it and what can be done to avoid it?
Written by Jack Sanders


Canine parvovirus is considered life-threatening and highly contagious to puppies and younger dogs, although older dogs that have been through their full series of “puppy shots” are generally protected from it.

The death of a dog from this disease is what prompted the state to quarantine the puppy sales for 14 days at True Breeders in Branchville, where the diseased puppy came from.

“Parvo,” as the disease is often called, is most often characterized by diarrhea that is in many cases bloody, and may be accompanied by vomiting.

“There is a high fatality rate,” said Dr. Bruce Sherman, a veterinarian who is director of the Bureau of Regulation and Inspection with the state Department of Agriculture.

The agriculture department is the state agency that imposed a 14-day quarantine on True Breeders.

“It depends on the situation, it depends on the individual animals, but it does have a high fatality rate in puppies that have no immunity to it. ” Dr. Sherman said.

Some puppies will have some temporary immunity passed on from their mothers.

“If the puppy has some immunity that has been passed along from the mother, chances are even if it’s exposed to the virus it won’t become infected,” Dr. Sherman said. “And if it does, it may not be as severe.”

The maternal protection fades with time, and may be replaced with immunization by shots — but the timing is tricky

While vaccinations are considered pretty reliable for dogs that have had their whole course of puppy shots, Dr. Sherman said, dogs that haven’t had all their shots may not be protected.

“Sometimes the immunity the puppy has from the mother will interfere with the vaccination,” he said. “That’s why they give a series of vaccinations. Nobody really knows when that immunity from the puppy will be gone.”

Although parvovirus is generally viewed as less of a threat to older dogs, particularly those that have had their shots, there are different variants of the virus in circulation and some can affect older dogs.

The Web site peteducation.com reports, “Current vaccinations have helped to control the spread of this disease but despite being vaccinated, some dogs still contract and die from parvo...”

There are parvoviruses that affect cats, but they are different strains than the ones affecting dogs. Cross-species contamination is not considered a worry.

Cleaning up kennels and areas where parvo has struck can be a tough job, Dr. Sherman said.

“It’s a nasty disease,” he said. “The virus is excreted in fecal material. It can be pretty difficult to disinfect areas.”

Areas where infected dogs have been kept must be “thoroughly cleaned and disinfected,” Dr. Sherman said.

“Cleaning is as important as the disinfection, because disinfectants don’t work well on organic material — it has to be a clean surface for the disinfectant to work.”

DVM360.com, a Web newsmagazine aimed at veterinarians, reported on Feb. 25 that parvovirus had turned up this winter in dogs at shelters in Stratford and Fairfield, raising concern among area veterinarians that there might be something of an outbreak in the area.

It quoted a Southport veterinarian as saying treatment for a dog with the disease may cost around $4,000, and calling for vigilance in hospital and shelter protocols, in vaccination, and in public education.

“There is a broad range in the severity of symptoms shown by dogs that are infected with parvovirus,” Peteducation.com says. “ Many adult dogs exposed to the virus show very few, if any, symptoms. The majority of cases of disease are seen in dogs less than six months of age with the most severe cases seen in puppies younger than 12 weeks of age.

“There are also significant differences in response to parvovirus infections and vaccines among different breeds of dogs, with Rottweilers, Doberman pinschers, and Labrador retrievers being more susceptible than other breeds.”

Peteducation.com also says, “Not all cases of bloody diarrhea with or without vomiting are caused by parvovirus and many sick puppies are misdiagnosed as having ‘parvo.’ The only way to know if a dog has parvovirus is through a positive diagnostic test.”