Treatment for canine parvovirus

CANINE PARVOVIRUS (CPV)

Canine parvovirus is a highly contagious and deadly virus that infect all dogs but unvaccinated dogs and puppies of 6-week to 6-month age group are mostly affected by this virus.This virus greatly damages the cell of intestine (enterocytes) causing gastroenteritis. This virus attack the immune system and it can also damage the heart muscle in unborn and young puppies.The dog infected with this virus are often said to have "parvo".German Shepherds,English Spaniels, Doberman Pinschers and American Pit Bull Terriers are  determined to have a high risk of this diseases.

TRANSMISSION AND SPREAD :

Parvo virus spread through direct contact with other infected dogs ,with infected feces or contaminated environment .The virus is very stable ,resistant to heat,cold,ph,humidity and to various common detergents and disinfectant.New born puppies are at higher risk during first 4 weeks as the immunity provided in the mother milk decreases before their own immune systems are mature enough to combat the infective agent,hence proper timing and dose of vaccine is necessary to save the life of your dog.
Virus is shed within 4-5 days of exposure in the feces of infected dog , throughout the period of disease and for 10-12 days after recovery from clinical signs.

DEVELOPMENT OF DISEASE :

Virus initially attacks the lymphoid tissue of the oral cavity the become systemic.Through blood circulation it reaches and attacks rapidly dividing cells of intestine,lymphoid tissues and bone marrow .Break down of intestinal epithelium impaired absorption which result in diarrhea which most of the times have blood in it appearing coffee brown in color.Destruction of rapidly diving cells of other body organs results in ;

• Neutropenia.
• lymphpenia.
• Myocarditis (in new born puppies)

CLINICAL SIGNS :

Clinical signs of parvo-virus disease includes :

1. Severe diarrhea (often bloody ,dark brown or coffee colored).
2. Fever.
3. Loss of appetite.
4. Vomiting.
5. Lethargy (extreme tiredness).
6. Foul smelling stool.

Vomiting and diarrhea causes severe dehydration and mostly death of animal occurs with 48-72 hour of the appearance of clinical signs.

TREATMENT FOR CANINE PARVO VIRUS :

There is no specific treatment for canine parvovirus to cure this disease as no specific drug is available to kill the virus. The main goal of treatment for canine parvovirus  enteritis includes restoration of fluids and electrolytes , symptomatic treatment i.e. to diminish vomiting,diarrhea and fever.Prevention of secondary bacterial infections through anti-biotics and restoration of metabolic abnormalities.

VACCINATION :

To prevent and control canine parvo-virus infection , a modified-live vaccine is recommended with following schedule;

• 1st shot   ---   6-8 wk age.
• 2nd shot  ---  10-12 wk age.
• 3rd shot  ---  14-16 wk age.
• 1st booster --- 1 yr later.
• Successive boosters --- After every 3 yr.

CONTROL STRATEGIES :

• The best control strategy is to vaccinate your dog regularly. If the vaccination history is unknown, vaccines must be administered from the first shot.
• You should isolate the infected dog from the healthier ones until they are completely recovered and are no longer shedding virus in feces. 
• The environment ,dog equipment, collar,bowl should be disinfected with a dilute bleach solution.

SURVIVAL RATE :

Parvo is a potentially fatal disease. The survival rate of dogs is 68 to 92 percent,if diagnosis and proper treatment is carried out within 48-72 hours following the onset of clinical signs ,while most puppies that survive the first three-to-four days make a complete recovery.