Parvo How Can I Protect My Puppy
The best way to protect your puppy is to follow the recommended vaccination schedule. At Mill Creek Animal Rescue, weaned puppies are vaccinated at 2 week intervals between 6 and 12 weeks (depending upon when they are weaned). Until your puppy is 2 weeks past its final round of vaccinations, it is at high risk of contracting Parvo. The safest thing to do is to keep your puppy away from the virus as much as possible. This means keeping your puppy confined to your home as much as possible. When you do take your puppy outside, your puppy should be carried unless you are in your own fenced-in yard. When you go to the veterinarian, you should carry your puppy. Your puppy should not be allowed to socialize with other dogs or walk on the ground of any areas where other dogs have been until two weeks after its last vaccination.
There is no "magic number" of vaccinations required to protect your puppy. The number of vaccines has nothing to do with it. When a puppy is born, its body is unable to manufacture antibodies to protect it. Instead, they are protected by the colostrum in their mother's milk, just the same as human babies are. The mother's own immunity is passed on to her babies, protecting them until it wears off. How much colostrum a puppy gets depends on its birth order and aggressiveness in nursing. Every nine days, the antibody level drops in half. At a certain level, it is no longer enough to protect the puppy from illness. The problem is knowing when to vaccinate the puppy, because the mother's antibodies will attack and destroy the vaccine as though it were an actual infection. There is a window of vulnerability where the mother's antibody isn't strong enough to fight infection, but is still too strong for a vaccine to be effective. This is when most puppies contract Parvo.
Exactly when a Vaccine will "take" varies even among puppies from the same litter. This is why we vaccinate puppies in a series of shots. Vaccinations given more frequently than 2 weeks will cause the same interference as the maternal antibody and render the vaccine ineffective.
Once a dog has been fully vaccinated, or recovered from a bout with Parvo, it may be immune for life. Although recommendations vary, most veterinary health care professionals recommend an annual vaccination. Some veterinarians recommend a three year vaccination, others recommend vaccinating high risk dogs every 6 months.
- What vaccine should be used?
It is believed that killed vaccine is the least effective against the maternal antibody. Live vaccine is generally believed to be more effective. A high titer vaccine is believed to be even more effective, leaving some virus left over after the maternal antibody has been used up to stimulate the puppy's immune system.
- What can you do to eliminate the virus in your environment?
An infected dog sheds 35 million viral particles (35,000 TIMES the typical infectious dose) per OUNCE of stool. If you believe your environment has been contaminated with Parvo virus, there are steps you can take to prevent it spreading.
- Indoors:
Untreated, Parvo probably loses its ability to infect a new host within one month.
The best and most effective disinfectant against Parvo and other viruses is common household bleach. One part bleach mixed with 30 parts water should be used to clean bowls, floors, surfaces, toys, bedding, and anything contaminated. Bleach will completely kill the Parvo virus.
- Outdoors:
Shaded areas should be considered contaminated for seven months. Areas with good sunlight exposure should be considered contaminated for five months.
Personally, I would recommend soak your yard with it -- better to kill the grass than your next dog!
If you think you may have come in contact with Parvo, you can wash your shoes and clothes, even your hands with a bleach solution to reduce the risk of infecting your dog.
If in doubt, before you bring home another dog, be sure it has a strong immunity to Parvo. Your veterinarian can run a titre to find out how well your dog will fare if exposed to Parvo.
Parvo is a very common problem, and kills thousands of puppies every year. Because of the ease with which is can be transmitted on hands, clothes, and most likely rodents and insects, it is virtually impossible to have a kennel that will not eventually be exposed to Parvo disease. Even with the best vaccination protocol in place, all puppies will have a window of at least several days when they are at risk. Using the newer high titer vaccines may shorten this window. Prompt treatment by your veterinarian will increase your puppy's chances of survival. But, again, your puppy's best chance is to be kept away from public areas until after it has received its full round of vaccinations.
Please, for your puppy's sake, be safe, not sorry.
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Cheree is practice manager of Azzore Veterinary Specialists, and founding director of the Mill Creek Animal Rescue - both in Russellville, AR. You can view pets available for adoption at Petfinder or visit her at MySpace
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Cheree_Miller
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