Puppy with Parvovirus.?

Question

We got a new GSH puppy last Wednesday - from a recommended breeder!

We took her to the vet on Friday night as she was very poorly (thankyou to you all that answered my question then and offered support).

Unfortunately Parvo has been diagnosed today! I really dont know how to feel, I am cross that I actually stuck up for the breeder when people were saying she couldnt be reputable! I am cross we have a sick puppy and I am cross she was sick when we got her.

She is very poorly dog but still alive after 5 days at the vets - so I hope she will be ok and recover?!

Please dont comment negatively - I am not the sort of person to take the decision about dog ownership lightly and I love all my pets dearly.

I want to ask if anybody has any information abour Parvo they can give me and also to let me know where I stand in terms of having a very sick puppy I paid a lot of money for and a huge vets bill, although ultimately I dont care about the money if it means she will be ok.

I have informed the breeder - who has said she is sorry and wants to be kept up to date on news - no offer of money was forthcoming, I was to upset t the time to argue it, although we will approach her again when we are certain on pups fate.

Thanks for the info Freedom - I took her for her first puppy vaccine shot on Thursday - so what you say may be possible, although as all her other symptoms point to Parvo aswell it makes sense that this is what it is. What annoys me a bit is that the vet gave a good bill of health check when I took her in - he didnt take her temp though! (he did when my cats went for first jabs!) - I am wondering if her temp might have been high then!

Answer 1

You can research Parvo online, google search is a great place to start. There are thousands of pet page sites that will give you medical advice and information. Speaking personally, I had a friend a few years ago that had a puppy with Parvo, and the puppy survived fine, after the right medical care. However, it is not always the case and it is difficult to watch your beloved pet suffer. Remember though, Parvo is contagious, so it's best to think thoroughly about all decisions. I wish you the best of luck in the recuperation of your new puppy, I hope he/she pulls out of this soon and in good health.

Answer 2

You need to contact the breeder right away and let her know that the puppy you got from her has Parvo. Did you sign a puppy contract or receive a guarantee upon your purchase of this puppy? If so read it. Did you take her to the vet within 48-72 hours after you picked her up? A lot of breeders require this and it is a requirement of the guarantee.

I think the breeder should at the very least pay for 1/2 of your vet bill. If the puppy was already showing signs of Parvo within a day or two of you getting her then she was exposed to it before you got her and that is not your fault.

Another reason to contact the breeder about this is she has other puppies who will become sick. If she acknowledges that some of her puppies are already sick then she needs to pay for your entire vet bill because she already knew.

I am sorry that your puppy is very sick. Parvo can be very deadly but if caught soon enough the survival rate is better. Sounds like she is a fighter. 5 days and still hanging in there is good and hopeful. She will take a while to fully recover. Make sure you disinfect everything. Throw away toys and buy new. Ask the vet what to use on your yard if she had been outside any before being hospitalized.

Good Luck and hopefully you will be taking your pup home very soon.

Answer 3

I'm glad your puppy is on the mend. I'm not saying you should start WWIII over the issue of being sold a puppy who was ill, but on the flipside of that, if she isn't informed or doesn't take it seriously, .and the virus gotten rid of, then countless other dogs and puppies will be put through the same torture. Its a horrible disease and heartbreaking to sit and wait as you well know. Your breeder must be held accountable. If your vet can prove that she had to be infected BEFORE you got her then you pretty much can claim for all of it back from the breeder. It might get messy but if she KNEW it was sick and sold it anyway she needs to be taken off the market and out of the breeder situation. She no longer has the animals concern at heart.

Parvo used to be fatal unless treated. Its a highly contagious disease as well from what I remember. We lost an entire litter of puppies about 20 years ago before new treatments and vaccines were available.

You've done everything that you can do. Its up to the puppy whether or not he's strong enough to survive this. If he's made it this far, that is a really good sign that he'll recover. My hat is off to you because in spite of a huge vet bill, you still realized the value of that furry little life. So many people can't do that. (Won't go into the "won't do" that bit. Grr!)

Keep your chin up and keep us posted on how its doing!
xx

Answer 4

How old is the pup? You can't automaitcally blame the breeder. Parvo can be picked up anywhere. Had the pup received any vaccines before you got her? There are reports that the Parvo vaccine can actually cause Parvo.. some will argue but those who have experienced it know better. You can also get false positive results from Parvo testing on recently vaccincated dogs.
I hope the pup will be fine.


http://www.sheltermedicine.com/portal/is_parvovirus_canine.shtml

Interpreting test results
Some vaccinated dogs may have a false-positive test, i.e. the virus in their feces is vaccine strain. The vaccine-positive result can happen within about 3-14 days of vaccination. A study in kittens suggests this is uncommon with some tests - only 1/64 recently vaccinated kittens tested weakly positive on the Idexx brand test. However, 13/64 kittens tested positive, some strongly positive, on the Synbiotics brand test. (Levy, J. K. (2006). Impact of Vaccination on Parvovirus Testing in Kittens. International Veterinary Vaccines and Diagnostic Conference, Oslo, Norway.) Equivalent data is not available for puppies, however all puppies testing positive should be carefully isolated regardless of recent vaccine history.

Some dogs with parvo have negative tests, either because it is very early in the course of the disease or late in the course (most puppies will test negative by the time they've had clinical signs for 2-3 days). Tests should be repeated on dogs that are strong suspects or used in conjunction with a CBC or blood smear.

Parvo incubates for 3 to 10 days so when you took her to the vet it would not be unreasonable that she would have no symptoms what so ever at that time. I also need to say here that she COULD have gotten parvo FROM that vet visit. After all, sick dogs are at the vets office. You will likely never know where it came from but unless the breeder has parvo on her property and other pups coming down with Parvo.. she likely did not get it there and the breeder can not take the blame nor be expected to pay for this unless it came from there.
Did you take her anywhere else? Park? Pet store?... Like I mentioned, she could have gotten this anywhere. People can track it in on their shoes.. it can live in a yard for years.. so it could have even came from your own yard or the vet clinics yard... Its impossible to tell.

Answer 5

I hope your dog weathers out the worse of the storm.
A neighbor I knew bought a cocker spaniel pup from the mall pet store.
The pup ended up having Parvo,.. after much $ later, he did fully recover with lots of TLC.
Last I heard before they moved, the dog was about 9-10 yrs. old and spoiled rotten with an attitude!

I may have missed your last question, so I don't know what breed you bought, but definitely the breeder should be made aware of the seriousness of what you and the pup are going thru.
I doubt there is any governing body to report this to, as animals unfortunately are deemed "property" rather than lives.

*Just read your update/breed of pup. I'm hopeful, your Shepherd will be fine and battle Parvo well.
The breeder, if she has any conscience and ethics should at the very least offer to pay some of the vet bills. Be assertive.

Answer 6

oh I do feel for you. On the positive side of things, I had a puppy many years ago that in my naivity I got from a farm, and she was very poorly with Parvo, this was in the days when it was unheard of and there were no vaccinations against it. The vet really didnt know how to treat her, I cant remember now what they did, but she pulled through, and lived until she was nearly 15 with hardly another days illness in her life.

Good luck, I do hope your puppy is OK, you must be beside yourself with worry. x

As for the breeder, if she is reputable and doesnt want her reputation damaged, she will want to cough up for the vets bills, and she would also need to know as parvo is obviously around in her kennel, and your puppies litter brothers and sisters may be at risk, so I would ring her to discuss.

Answer 7

Hi em, thats really sad, my sympathies are with you. You must be demented with worry, its a dog owners worst nightmare and you're living it, i can't imagine how you really feel inside. If she's still fighting after 5 days in the vets, she's in with a bloody good chance, bless her. They'll be doing their utmost to pull her through, no-one likes to see a dog, especially a puppy, so ill and i hope and pray that they're winning the battle! When you know that she's on the road home and you're feeling a little less tearful, ring that f*****g breeder and demand your money back, don't be polite and ask for it, bloody demand it by return of post or you're sueing! It was her responsibility as the breeder to ensure that her pups were up to date on their vaccines and she's not done it and so therefore, in the eyes of the law, she's guilty of selling a sick puppy. Don't be nice to her, she's done you and your poor pup a terrible diservice and needs to be told straight that she's out of order and could, potentially, end up owing you hundreds, if not thousands, of pounds! My yorkie had a virus in his body that mimicked the parvo virus and when he first fell ill with it the vet said that had he had the real thing, the first step to recovery is prompt and detailed attention from them! Bearing that in mind, i think your little girl will make it as she had immediate medical attention. I'll keep her in my prayers, please let us know how she gets on and try not to make yourself ill over it, she has so many people willing her on she's bound to make it!

Answer 8

I'm so sorry to hear about your sick puppy. Back when it was just beginning to be a widespread condition, we lost all but one of a litter to parvo, so I know how devastating it can be. Fortunately, there's better ways of dealing with it now, than then.

If the breeder is truly reputable, she will more than likely be willing to make some consideration about the cost. But wait until you know what the outcome is, and you've regained some of your composure, as that will help you deal with her in a more effective manner. It's good that you know you're too upset to discuss this with her now.

My very best wishes for you and your pup.

Answer 9

Have you contacted the breeder to let her know that your pup has Parvo? If nothing else, she needs to know because her other pups may have it as well.

Personally, I'd request some financial help, since she sold a sick puppy (possibly knowing that the pup was ill). That's assuming if you can prove the pup was ill at the time of purchase (and if you knew that, why did you purchase the pup?)

Anyways, the pup could've caught parvo, on the travel home from the breeder's home to yours. My sister 'adopted' a puppy from me, and the pup was 100% healthy when she got her, but the town she lived, was at ''high risk'' for Parvo, and she failed to know that until the pup was diagnosed. Unfortunately, the pup didn't survive.

Anyways, here's some information on Parvo, and I hope your lil' pup is a fighter, and can overcome this rough obstacle. I hate how the puppy has to suffer, because someone wasn't paying enough attention:
http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=2&cat=1556&articleid=467
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canine_parvovirus

Answer 10

I would definitely tell the breeder about what has happened, and ask for her help financially. The breeder, if reputable, should do something for you.

They may also tell you there's nothing they can do, in which case you can either fight or leave it alone. If you want to take it to civil court, you could, however, the costs may be more than the vet bills, along with the aggravation.

As for Parvo itself, your vet should be able to answer any questions you have.