Parvo Treatment - Symptoms And Options
The Canine Parvovirus, which is usually just known as Parvo, is a viral infection that attacks dogs (although other animals may also get it, including cats, ferrets, raccoons, along with other small mammals, for example).
There are two main types of Parvo - cardiac and intestinal, and it is the intestinal form that is much more common.
Parvo Symptoms
The primary symptoms of Parvo are:
• not eating / lack of appetite
• lethargy / insufficient playfulness
• not drinking
• dehydration
• diarrhea (often bloody and more often than not foul-smelling)
• vomiting (either an off-white egg-white consistency, or frothy and yellow)
• depression
• fever or chills
While many people associate Parvo with diarrhea, this is usually not the first sign of Parvo - what you typically see first would be the behavioural symptoms, such as losing interest in food, hesitant to play either along with you or his favourite toys, and maybe not drinking.
You should note, however, that not all dogs show the suggestions above symptoms (e.g. not all dogs get a fever), and that they may not appear in the same order.
You also have to realise that Parvo is not just a puppy virus - even adult dogs could possibly get it, regardless of whether they’ve been vaccinated or otherwise. (We know of one 14-year old dog that got Parvo, and that dog had been regularly vaccinated for that first 12 many years of its life.)
Parvo Treatment
So, in case your dog has Parvo (i.e. it has been confirmed with a positive Parvo test) or he is exhibiting the above symptoms, then you need to spring into action immediately, because the one thing you do not have with Parvo 's time.
The latest strains, especially 2c, are unbelievably aggressive, and dogs have been known to die within hours of the first bout of diarrhea.
For this reason it’s crucial to look for the non-physical symptoms such as the lack of appetite and also the lethargy, as these work great clues that something is seriously wrong. After all, how many dogs are you aware that turn their nose up at food?
So, what Canine Parvovirus treatment options do you have?
Most people will take their dog towards the vet, as this is what people have been “trained” (or brainwashed) to complete, but this is what our a large number of customers have been telling us:
• You can expect the cost of treatment for Parvo to be anywhere from high to extortionate. In the USA, your bill might be anywhere from $500 USD to in excess of $12,000 USD - and that’s only for one animal.
• You will likely be quoted a success rate of about 50%, which means your dog is just as likely to die because it is to survive. A few vets will go as high as 80% (but not many), while some go as low as 20%.
• Vets’ Parvo treatment will contain IV fluids (which is basically salty water), antibiotics (the side-effects of which are often the same as Parvo, for example vomiting and diarrhea, that is clearly not what you want), anti-emetics (more chemicals to supposedly help prevent vomiting, although vomiting more can be a side-effect), and they may even suggest (or insist upon) blood transfusions (which are very expensive, and one is not usually enough).
• A few vets will provide liquid nutrition (in the USA, this may be a product such as CliniCare), but the vast majority do nothing at all to address the real chance of hypoglycemia (i.e. a drop in blood sugar levels that is especially dangerous and often fatal for really young and/or really tiny dogs).
But there is another option for how to treat Parvo, and one that your vet probably won’t even mention, which is…
Home Remedies For Parvo In Dogs
Yes, Parvo may be treatable successfully at home, with no specialised training, with no specialist equipment, and without having to stick needles into your sick pet.
Here is what we would expect with a good home Parvo Treatment Kit, again, according to our extensive experience:
• A cost that is around $200 USD, which may treat several animals (as much as 50, in fact), depending on their weight.
• A success rate that's about 90% (provided that people stick to the detailed Parvo treatment plan towards the letter).
• Safe, home remedies that address both dehydration (take a look at our ParvoBuster Emergency Tea Recipe) and hypoglycemia.
• No adverse side-effects, because the products are chemical-free and 100% natural.
Conclusion
Parvo is a very nasty virus, and it’s getting worse all of the time. Even if you only suspect your pet might have been infected (as there are other reasons, of course, for dogs vomiting and achieving diarrhea), our policy is when it looks like Parvo, then you should treat it as though it were Parvo, since you really cannot afford to waste whenever.
Why would you want to sit there and watch your pet die before your very eyes, whenever you could (and should) be doing all you can to get him better - after all, he can’t do it by himself, and that's why he relies on you to do what’s best for him.
As strong believers in natural treatments, we obviously would recommend the Parvo treatment at home option - it’s safe, effective, affordable, and also you won’t be making a bad situation worse by clogging your gutters sick pet track of chemicals (and all of their consequent side-effects).
About The Authors
Rae & Mark happen to be running ParvoBuster (part of Friends Of The Planet, Inc.) since 2007, and during that time have amassed a wealth of knowledge and experience in successfully treating Parvo at home (4,251 dogs and counting), helping pet owners both in the USA and in many other countries around the world.