Help with my sick pup?

Question

I got my puppy before Thanksgiving as soon as I got her I took her to the vet for a health check. They told me she has Giardia. We treated her with Metronidazole for a week. After that she still had it so we treated for 14 days, tested again and still had it. So now we put her on Panacur twice daily for 14 days, but on the 4th day she has extremely bad diarrhea so I stoped the Panacur and she still has really bad diarrhea. When she was first diagnosed her stool was pretty normal. Not until the Panacur did she have diarrhea. My vet has said they have never seen this before. The pup weighs less then 3 pounds why is the giardia so difficult to get rid of and now why does she seem to have diarreha. I also did some research and I coulnt find any side effects from Panacur. Has anyone heard of this before or is there something else wrong with her. Please help this has gone on for months now and its very difficult to deal with.

I have tried Albon it didnt work either. I have heard of pumpkin helping I will look into it. Thanks.

For the person who will print out my question and ask their vet, thank you very much this has been extremely hard and my vet isnt helping much. I have another dog (who is healthy) so its been stressful keeping them seperate as well.

Oh and yes I stopped the Panacur which was the vet's order.

Thank you all for your help and comments. Maybe I can sleep a little better now and get an appt with a second opinion tomorrow.

Answer 1

Does your Vet know that you stopped the Panacur? If so, and your Vet is still stumped, please see another Vet. ALSO, see a Vet that knows about animal nutrition. IN the meantime, you might want to feed your dog a few spoons of Pumpkin Pie Filling, three or four times a day. You can buy it canned and NOT SPICED. This is real good for treating diarrhea. It may not help but it sure won't hurt! It helped my dogs when they were building up immune systems after coming from shelters.
Also, ask your Vet about giving your dog some Ester C or a supplement for building her immune system.

Answer 2

Ask your vet about trying Albon.
I use it preventatively on my pups(it soothes the stomach,and guards against Giardia and Coccidia).
Panacur is a wormer,and is usually given 3 -5 days in a row,no more.Was your pup wormy aswell?
Kaopec syrup to stop the diarreah.No more Panacur,it ripped her stomach open,seems she had enough of that already.
Kaopec syrup given double dose first time,then half the dose and give 2 times daily until her diarreah stops.Do not give any other medication until her stool is normal again.Then seriously consider Albon.Talk to your vet.

Answer 3

I'm sorry but I really dont know what is wrong with your puppy. But I have a few suggestions...

1.) see if you can get a second opinion from another vet or maybe two vets. And see what they think it is. It is always good to get another opinion just in case the first vet didnt know what he was doing. Also the other opinion might have another way of treatment that would be better for your puppy or he may diagnose it as something else that might be the real problem. Also since you vet said he has never seen diahreah from a Giardia patient he probably diagnosed your puppy wrong. Anyways Just give it a try it wouldnt hurt and it might save your puppy.

2.) Since you couldnt find any side effects with Panacur then the diahreah could just be a coincidence with starting the Panacur. Especially if you took her off of the Panacur and she still has diahreah. If she got her puppy shots recently that could have caused diareah and have nothing to do with Giardia. But it could very well be related to Giardia. Or he has something else wrong with his body causing it. I really dont know.

3.) Keep your puppy as comfortable as possible and feed it quality brand of food to keep it healthier. Also consult a vet to see if adding supplements to his food would help increase his health since he is sick and help his body fight it off better. Also since it is the colder season now make sure he is warm, if his body uses up his energy to keep warm it will be hard for his body to ward off any sicknesses. Try not to excersise it too much after he has had diareah. It will only make it worse just like us, we have to lay down for a while to not upset our colons again. Same with your dog. Just take it easy for a week or two to help his body get rest so he can fight off what ever he has. Make sure he eats and drinks a lot this will provide his body with energy to fight off his illness and will replace the nutrients lost from diareah.

Bottom Line: Take your dog to a second opinion to see what the other vet has to say. It could very well help your dog out because obviously your vet now isnt helping your dog out. Make sure he gets plenty of food and lots of water, rest and stays warm. This will help him stay healthy and fight off his illness better.

I really hope you find the right vet that will treat and diagnose your dog correctly and I hope your dog stays healthy and doesnt pass on. I will keep you, your family and your dog in my prayers. I know how loved that dog must be.

Answer 4

Side effects of panacur are not common, I worry that your puppy may have something more serious. I would take the puppy back to your vet or maybe get a second opinion.

Answer 5

I talked to the vet that I work for. She said to let you know that a lot of vets don't give a high enough dosage of metronidazol. The 1st dose should be 44mg/kg 3 x day and the second dose should be 22mg/kg for 3 weeks. 1kg = 2.2lbs. If your puppy begins to act drunk, you should stop the medicine. Maybe talking to another vet or suggesting to your vet that another vet said to try a higher dosage. I really hope your puppy gets better. Let me know if there is anything I can do to help.

Answer 6

I used to work for a vet and with diarrhea, we would recc. 'boiled' hamburger meat and white rice (cooked). Only for a few days though! Make sure there isn't any grease in the meat too (boil it and then drain the water- rinse too)
Your BEST advice is with your vet though- even get a 2nd opinoin if it makes you feel better! Vets will not be offended, they're human too!
Good luck!

Answer 7

Who said benadryl?Stupid.
anyways, pup needs stomach protectants, fluids, etc, until she gets rid of the giardia.giardia can be extremely frustrating for owners.Also, make sure you didnt change her diet or she didnt chew up a toy that is irritating her stomach.If you are unhappy with your vet, find a new one.That's the beauty of veterinary medicine.There's a vet for everyone...good luck.

Answer 8

i had a similar issue andmy vet recommended cooking some ground sirloin and taking all the fat and feeding it to my pup to stop the diarreha find another vet and fast

Answer 9

Giardia is difficult to ttreat because not much is known about it.

Answer 10

Honestly, keep it warm and comfortable. If its in misery, give it half of a benedryl