what is parvo in dogs and what can you do about it. my puppy just stopped eating and is vomiting.?

Question

my puppy is 12wks old and wont eat and is vomiting, he will play a little but not like before, when you offer him food he just turns away. you have to force liquid in him. I have no money to take him to the vet. Is there something I can buy otc
to help him feel better.

Answer 1

you have to take them to the doc for a shot & antibiotics. otherwise it is pretty likely that he will die. seriously. parvo is bad.

Answer 2

My puppy had parvo. She was throwing up consantly and had blood in her stool. The vet said it isnt the parvo that usually kills them its the dehydration unless the parvo goes straight to the heart. She was put on parvo medicine and had to stay there several nights so she could be monitored. She had an IV of fluids in her for about a week and a half. She made a full recovery. It is EXTREAMLY imortant that you take it to the vet right away!! There is nothing you can buy over the counter and it would be better to have him put to sleep if you cant afford treatments then to have him suffer like that. I ended up spending about $800 on the hospital stay, medicine, and follow up visits. Oh, yeah if you do go to the vet, call and tell them bf you go so they can have you take her in a different entence bc its very contagious to small puppies. They will have you dip your shoes in a solution that kills the virus and they wont want you to touch ANYTHING. Thats how serious this is. And if you ever decide to get another puppy, remember that the virus can live in the enviroment for up to two years (even in the hot sun and below freezing winters). Bleach is one of the only house hold cleaners that will kill the virus. Also normally the place you purchased him from will be responsible for the treatments if they have parvo. Look at your adoption papers. I got her from the human society and signed a waver so I ended up footing the bill. I know how you feel, it breaks your heart to see them like that. If you have any more questions email me.

Answer 3

Parvo is a virus - not airborne but shed by carrier dogs. Parvo viris is deadly and puppies are vulnerable because of their imature immune system. It is one of the diseases that your dog is protected from with his initial vaccination course and yearly boosters but your pup, even if vaccinated, is vulnerable at the moment. You don't mention how long he has been like this but if it is more than one day then you need to act quickly. Whether or not your pup has parvo you must take your pup to a vet immediately. I mean TODAY. A 12 week old pup not drinking, vomiting and lethargic will become dehydrated very quickly and die very quickly. You may not have time to think about this - This is a life threatening condition in a youngster. To try to force water down his throat if you don't know what you are doing is dangerous - the water can very easily end up in his lungs and he might need to be on a drip. The cause could be a number of things - including infection. To try to treat this yourself is not an option. If you are in the UK and claiming benefits you will be able to take him to the PDSA- and treatment is free. Take your documents with you.

If you don't qualify for that then you MUST find the money - you got the pup - you have a duty of care towards him.- failure to provide that care can be an offence as well as being immoral. Keep notes - keep the vet bills - you may or may not have a case against whoever you got the pup from - you can look into that later but if he has been like this for say 12 hours then get him to a vet urgently.
Good luck. Kath

Answer 4

Parvovirus

Parvovirus is a viral disease of dogs. It affects puppies much more frequently than it affects adult dogs. The virus likes to grow in rapidly dividing cells. The intestinal lining has the biggest concentration of rapidly dividing cells in a puppy's body. The virus attacks and kills these cells, causing diarrhea (often bloody), depression and suppression of white blood cells -- which come from another group of rapidly dividing cells. In very young puppies it can infect the heart muscle and lead to "sudden" death.

How is Parvo treated?

Without intense treatment, the victims of parvo die of dehydration. Treatment generally consists of IV or sub-cutaneous fluids and antibiotics. There is no cure. Veterinarians can only treat the symptoms palliatively, and try to keep the dog alive by preventing dehydration and loss of proteins. As there is no cure for any virus, treatment for parvo is mostly that of supporting the different systems in the body during the course of the disease. This includes giving fluids, regulating electrolyte levels, controlling body temperature and giving blood transfusions when necessary.

Dogs who have survived parvo can get it again. In the case of some puppies, a puppy testing negative for Parvo one day could succumb to the virus within a matter of days. It strikes fast and without mercy. Dr. Cathy Priddle has warned that sulfa drugs have been known to cause dehydration in dogs, suggesting that animals infected with parvovirus should not be given sulfa drugs.

You may also consult a homeopathic or naturopathic veterinarian for alternative Parvo treatments. There are some natural and homeopathic treatments for Parvo on the retail market. Amber Technology offers Parvaid, an all natural herbal formula that the manufacturer claims has helped some animals overcome Parvo.

Answer 5

I just want to tell you that I am sorry about your dog. Parvo is the greatest killer of all for puppies. My dog Daisey was adopted a week ago and she was 8 months old, lab mix. She got Parvo from the shelter. I didn't know this at the time. She spent an entire week on IV fluids, nutrients, during the day she was in the vets trying to fight the killer disease and by night she was either in an ER room or at our home hooked up to meds. There is NO CURE for Parvo. My dog fought very hard for a week and we spent over $3,000.00 dollars to save her life. She never made it. A lot of people are going to tell you it's all about dehydration, that is a major part of the disease. Keep the dog hydrated but you also have to have antiobiotics to help her not get the infection as it goes through it's course. The dog literally sheds its intestines when it has the bowel movement. You are in the early stages of this. As your dog progresses you will see more, vomit, more blood, you will watch your dog have thick mucus on her mouth and a rotten smell that you will never ever forget. If you have other dogs (puppies that have not ever been vaccinated they will get this as well as well as older dogs.) It can not be transmitted to birds, or cats or humans. I am not a vet tech but this last week was the hardest week of my life and you will get a lot of encouragement through the process but in the end it really is a 50/50 chance of survival. Everything the dog touches, plays with or even uses the bathroom has GOT TO BE BLEACHED!! You can not take your dog anywhere and you have to warn people that come into your home or yard with animals that you have the disease. The disease itself lasts whereever you don't clean. Grass, the carpets, anywhere. It lasts and poses a threat for the rest of you life with any dog that enters your home that has NOT HAD VACCINATIONS. I wish you so much hope with this. I hope your dog will make it, I hope you don't have to go through what I did but if you do start to go through it and you don't have the money please put the puppy down humanely. Because the dehydration hurts them, and the constant vomitting, and blood from the stools hurts them. If you have any questions you can write me directly and I can help you. You will get lots of advice on here but the truth is in the end no matter how hard you fight it is like a human cancer IT KILLS and your job is to keep your furbaby hydrated and pain free as they go through this horrible horrible thing.

Answer 6

Go to the health food store and get collidal silver. You can get it for about 10 bucks, give as directed. It's a natural antibiotic. Also try force feeding your puppy raw egg and instead of water give it gatorade. This will give it protein for stregnth and gatorade will keep him hydrated. Parvo is the same virus that causes chicken pox in humans, but it can be deadly for a dog. Also, if you were to get another puppy, it you don't have it's parvo shot, it will get it also because it lives in the ground years after you have had a dog with it. Hope all turns out well.

Answer 7

In all honesty, you have to realize that when you get a puppy, it might get sick. Then you need to take it to a vet. If you weren't financially ready for this, why did you even get a puppy? Your pup needs a vet. It could be something serious. Call a veternarian and ask about making payments. Veteranarians are veteranarians because they love animals. I don't think that any vet would turn your dog down for treatment. Explain your financial situation. But call TODAY! Every minute counts if it's parvo!!!

Answer 8

Take him to the local shelter or Humane Society (they have vets there) and get some help. Parvo will kill your dog. They have to be treated by a vet with IV antibiotics. It sounds like your puppy is really sick, and it is imporatant not to put it off because with parvo they will seem to get better on their own and then die.

Answer 9

my puppy just had parvo. we like u did not have the money to take her to a vet. i did alot of research online here is what has worked for us.go to a feed store buy liquid penicillan give shots twice a day in muscle for 4 days. buy pedialite and a childs enema. empty out enema fill with pedialite give enema every other hour. on the odd hours fill enema with water and give. the puppy will die of secondary infection or dehydration not the parvo its self. bleach is the only thing that kills the virus. you must bleach everything the puppy has went to the bathroom on. including your yard parvo can live for 7 months in the yard and freezing doesnt kill it.i feed my puppy baby formula 4 oz 3 times a day. good luck i hope your puppy makes it.

Answer 10

Parvo vaccines can prevent parvo and should not be given to a sick dog, much less one who has parvo.

Does this dog have a temp.? Taken rectally, temp should be 101-102. Does he have diarrhea with blood in it?

There are a lot of things that vomiting and not eating could be.

Answer 11

I agree. take him in now to the vet. but don't lose hope. my dog had parvo when he was a few months old. he spent about a week at the vet's getting treatment but turned out great and now he's as strong as ever.