What Every Puppy Owner Needs to Know About Parvo in Puppies

What is parvovirus?

Parvovirus in dogs is a potentially fatal infection that damages the intestines and causes severe diarrhea and dehydration. With severe dehydration, blood no longer circulates as it should and your dog may die before diarrhea develops. When the intestine is damaged, blood vessels that nourish the intestine are also damaged. The blood vessels break and blood enters the intestine. At the same time, bacteria travel from the intestines out into the blood vessels and are carried throughout the body. Just as diarrhea can cause death, an infection in the blood (septicemia) can also cause death.

Parvovirus is a conceivably lethal illness in dogs that is prevented by vaccination.

Puppies under 16 weeks of age and dogs in crowded or unsanitary conditions are most at risk for developing parvovirus.

Signs & symptoms of parvovirus in dogs

Dogs with parvovirus may vomit and have bloody diarrhea with abdominal pain. Often diarrhea has an unusually offensive odor caused by blood in the stool. With parvo, intestinal bleeding occurs in the small intestine so that the blood is partially digested and passes out as black, tarry feces (melena).

Dogs with parvovirus become thin and weak. They are dehydrated and the skin stays "tented" when pinched rather than falling back into place. Tenting is a classic sign of dehydration. The gums in the mouth are tacky rather than moist, and the eyes may appear sunken.

Bacteria growing in the blood is called septicemia. Septicemia is caused when bacteria in the intestines travel through the intestinal wall and move directly into the blood. Some dogs become dehydrated and septicemic so rapidly they die before diarrhea occurs. This is because dogs with septicemia have high fevers and may go into shock.

Some dogs with parvovirus will have only mild infections and few signs of infection. It's possible to have some puppies in a litter with mild infections and other puppies with severe infections.

• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Abdominal pain
• Offensive stool odor caused by blood
• Intestinal bleeding
• Rapid weight loss
• Weakness
• Skin tenting
• Tacky gums
• Sunken eyes
• Death (if septicemia is present)

Diagnosis of parvovirus in dogs

Parvovirus in dogs is diagnosed by physical signs, blood tests, and stool tests. The most common physical sign is bloody diarrhea. This diarrhea has a distinctly foul odor.

Stool tests can confirm the presence of parvovirus in the feces. Puppies with parvovirus have severe diarrhea; the stool has so much fluid in it that the concentration of virus is too small to detect. This gives a false negative result.

The blood test used to diagnose parvo, called a parvo antibody titer, shows if your puppy's antibodies are fighting the parvo infection. The level of antibodies is called a titer.

There are 3 strains of parvovirus, 2a, 2b and 2c, up until recently tests were only able to detect the 2a and 2b strands. Fortunately, with the latest advances in testing, doctors are now able to detect all three strains of parvo. The test is highly accurate in both specificity and sensitivity and is performed by taking stool samples.

Veterinary treatment for dogs with parvovirus

A dog or puppy with parvovirus should receive immediate veterinary care. Treatment will include the following:

• IV fluids to counter dehydration
• Antibiotics to prevent septicemia
• Probiotics to replenish the normal intestinal flora
• Injectable vitamins, especially Vitamins B & C to help the immune system
• Colostrum to provide antibacterial elements to fight the infection within the gut
• Glucosamine to coat the intestines