Taking Care of a Puppy With Parvo at Home

We thought he was getting better, but now he doesn't want anything and you can tell he is not feeling well. A few years ago my son's girlfriend had a pup that was really sick. When we took her in to the vet they said she had Parvo and didn't think she was going to make it. But they gave us a couple bags of water for IVs they told us to just make sure we gave her an IV every couple of hours plus they gave us some kind of pills to give her.

Does anybody know where I can buy the IV bags? What kind of medications is it that they give them? Is it an antibiotic? Please help, my husband is refusing to put out anymore money on dogs, because my son had told us he had done his shots months ago. Now we find out that he only gave one shot, not the two follow-up ones.

By mindyspupinfo from Nampa, ID

Archives: Request: Taking Care of a Puppy With Parvo at Home Archived on 07/07/2009 Two of my dogs died of Parvo this week and my little runt Cupcake caught it. I gave her IV fluids and we are on day 7. She is up and running and eating solid foods. I think it's good, but I'm not sure. I tried giving her a bland diet and she wouldn't eat it. Should I let her eat what she wants? By Karina from Fresno, CA Feedback: RE: Taking Care of a Puppy With Parvo at Home It is possible to treat Parvo at home and even though going to the vet is recommended, we do love our pups but just don't have the money. I've dealt with death caused by Parvo since the age of nine, when my Rott died, she was not even two months old; she had all her shots and everything. It was our first pup and we didn't know the symptoms. A few months later we got another pup and she also was infected. She pulled through somehow, but I can't remember how. Last year, another Rott pup got Parvo, but we somehow managed to treat it and she survived and is strong as ever. We crushed vitamins and aspirin together and mixed it with the powder Propel (since she was throwing up the water mix) and slowly she recovered. It's not as easy as it sounds, though. Also, as unsafe as it might be we also gave her a small dose of a penicillin shot. Don't know if that helped or not, but she pulled through. Now, my Chihuahua, who was donated to me via a friend of a friend and I believe was abused and not given his shots, is infected. We've been giving him Pedialyte with the same as above and vitamin water. It's the third day and I hope he pulls through. I can only hope that you treat your pups with great care and be patient with them. I don't believe that going to the vet is necessary, but I still recommend you do in the case that you can't find the time to heal your pets. And I also believe that pulling through does not make them weaker, in fact it makes them stronger. My older Rott (above) has never gotten infected with Parvo or anything ever since she pulled through and she's going on nine years now. Wish you the best and hope this helps. (04/23/2009) By darlingnicotine Report Spam or Abuse Request: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home Archived on 03/26/2009 My puppy Nemo has Parvo. I'm giving him Pedialyte because I can't afford a vet. What else can I do? He's only about 4-7 lbs. Is he too small for the bleach thing I've been reading about? Please help! Ashley from Stockton, CA Answers: RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home Give him Karo Syrup and water. That is what I gave mine and it got better. (01/25/2008) By amy RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home You can see if you can get any IV fluids from a vet and give them yourself at home under the skin. I would call your local vet and see what they can do for you. There is a new product called Cerenia to help with the nausea/vomiting, it also works for car sickness. You might be able to call your vet and say your dog gets car sick and see if they will sell you a box of 4 tabs. It is labeled for animals over 16 weeks old. The main thing with treatment is to keep them warm and hydrated. Parvo is a virus so you have to let it run its course basically and do supportive care. They are more susceptible to bacterial infections though, so antibiotics help. But you can try giving small amounts of Pedialyte or Gatorade every hour if not vomiting. Make sure they are keeping enough down to keep their blood sugar up. Then after 12 hours of no vomiting, give small amounts of pureed chicken/rice in frequent feedings. Then gradually feed them more at feedings and get them back on puppy food. I suggest to all to get your pups vaccinated. If you get the puppy series of vaccines from your vet from 6-16 wks, there is a very slim chance your pup will ever get this. When your pup gets better be sure to get his vaccine. In case it isn't parvo that he has now, make sure he doesn't get it. (01/26/2008) By junebug_000 RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home Good Luck to you and to all the pups and dogs affected by this awful disease. In 1979, my Cocker Spaniel got Parvo and he nearly died. He was at the vet for a over a week. It was not a real known thing back then like it is now. My precious one got through the parvo, then got Heartworms, had to have that treatment done. Now I watch my dogs like a hawk. We adopted a very well behaved yellow Lab from the pound, who ended up having Heartworms. We had the treatment done and then we found out she was pregnant and she had 11 pups, who were all prefect and heartworm free. No we don't have all of them, we kept one pup, and the rest went to good homes. That was last year and Gretchen is doing just great! Janet in Iowa (01/27/2008) RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home http://www.stocktonpets.org/, http://www.stockton.ca.us/Animals/index.cfm. The most important thing is the dehydration, chicken broth might help, try giving small amounts of water so that your pup isn't dehydrated. You can contact these two links that I have listed for your area, I would contact someone at the numbers listed and see if they have any advice. http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/308453/how_to_treat_parvo_virus.html. These links may help you deal with the immediate situation. Best result would be to have your pup immunized-I hope you aren't too late to help out. Lots of knowledgeable folks at the shelters to offer suggestions as well. Good luck. (01/27/2008) By tupelohoney17 RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home It's a lot of work but I used; a mixture of 1/2 unflavored kaopectate & 1/2 cheery milk of magnesia. The types without aspirin. Aspirin is hard on their stomach, which is already inflamed. Given 10cc every hour along with unflavored pedialyte 10cc or what ever you can get down them. Until vomiting & diarrhea stops. In about 3 days they should be improving. Start feeding water & baby food rice cereal mixed with pedialyte. Say a prayer, I did! But if you can afford it please check with a vet. You will have to clean everything with bleach that you can't discard. Including the yard, I used bleach in a garden sprayer to spray the entire yard. Discard any bedding, & good luck. You must keep them hydrated! A vet can use IV fluids to do this, that's one reason a vet is so important in treating this. (01/27/2008) By Joe RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home I pulled a pup through parvo by alternating pedialyte (unflavored) and buttermilk. Buttermilk will replace his stomach acids that he needs, and pedialyte will replace the electrolytes his body needs. About every 15 to 20 minutes, I would give him about 1cc (with a syringe). Place the syringe in the side of his mouth, back next to his jaw teeth, this way it is harder for him to spit it out. Also you can use about 1/2 cc of Immodine (like humans take for diarrhea) about every hour. I did this night and day for 3 days before I could see any results. But it saved the pup. (01/27/2008) By Kay RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home The vet is really the only viable option and even then it's not a sure thing. Parvo is very serious. But there's not a vet in the world that won't work with you to work out a payment plan or something like that that you can handle. You might also want to check and see if there's a veterinary school or university near you with a vet program that might treat the pup for low or no cost. Worth checking out anyway. Best of luck. (01/27/2008) By Marna RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home Your best bet is a vet or low cost clinic. My dog had it, and I fed him beaten eggs and white rice. Chicken broth will work too but he needs heart guard to help clean out the virus. I am so sorry but you really need to take him to the vets. Good luck (01/27/2008) By cece. RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home Please call your local humane society, they may help you get the help you need. I know the one here where I live, helps low income people. Please call. It sure can't hurt and may save your dog's life. (01/27/2008) By lviars50 RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home There are so many good ideas here already, but one thing, do NOT give raw eggs to any dog or cat. Cook them first. Raw eggs can cause liver damage over time. If your dog isn't vomiting, try small amounts of the juice from fruit cocktail. The ER Docs I work with said it is the closest thing to the electrolytes they need and also keeps the blood sugar level close to normal. Good luck. Just so people know, some dogs can receive several booster shots for Parvo and still get it. My Vet said the vaccine is good, but it has a lot to do with the animal's genetic make-up and how healthy the lineage is. (01/27/2008) By Ragteller RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home Even after having 2 or the three shots our Britney Spaniel ended up with parvo. The vet had him isolated and on IV's for a week. We weren't sure he would make it. Recently I helped a friend who had two golden lab pups. The first to come down, began drinking again in two days and pulled through. The other just kept getting worse and finally died. Both were seen by the vet. The vet gave them an IV when there to help rehydrate them, but sent them home to be cared for. I think if they had sent an IV home, the second could have made it. It is a very devastating illness for dogs. Even after they have had it once, you need to keep up immunizations for parvo. Do see a vet. The human societies have them, and see if you can at least get IV's if the dogs are not drinking on their own. (01/27/2008) By har'iet RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home I hope you got to the vet and got the puppy cared for, since vets will take payments. Use home remedies on other items, but if it's a living thing in your care, do the right thing. God bless you and your puppy for a long happy life together. (01/27/2008) By kimhis RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home I want to thank everyone for the help, but sadly Nemo passed away later that day. It was so hard to let him go but I had to so I gave him a proper burial. I wrapped him in his favorite blanket. Now I know if I ever get another puppy, the very first thing I will do is get him all shots and all protection, cause I couldn't go through that again. I still have pictures and video of Nemo though, so he won't be forgotten. (01/27/2008) By ashley RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home I am very sorry about your loss. Before you go through that again, I am nearly certain that Parvo can live in your house for some time. I believe that is what the bleach is for. Please look into that more before you bring another puppy into your home or you may be setting yourself up for more heartache. (01/28/2008) RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home My puppy has parvo and I took him to a vet, there is no cure for it just to make sure they get plenty of fluids. Per my vet even if you put him in an animal shelter there is only a 50 50 chance they will make it. (01/30/2008) By jb RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home I'm sorry your puppy passed away. I had a 9 month old pit bull puppy who had ALL of his vaccines and still got parvo. Vaccines don't always work especially in young puppies who still have their mother's antibodies. My vet gave me Tamiflu along with some anti diarrhea and anti nausea medicine, unfortunately for him it was too late and he died the next day. Now another outbreak is going around here and my 2 Tibetan Mastiff/ Lab mix puppies have gotten it. Both have had their shots. The female got it first and the vet I took her to gave her Tamifle, Amoxicillin, and some anti Diarrhea and anti nausea medicine. He also told me to give her unflavored pedialyte. That bill ended up being $125. If you have insurance you could get your doctor to give you Tamiflu, it is a human drug used to treat the flu and has been known as a miracle drug for parvo dogs. A couple days later her brother started showing signs and we took him to a different vet who gave him Cerenia and metronidazole, both very inexpensive. The most expensive thing on his bill was the $40 office visit. It's been 4 days for Nola and she is doing great, she's started eating again (plain white rice and chicken broth is what the vet told me to give her) and is chasing the cats. She no longer has diarrhea or nausea. It's been 2 days for her brother and he is already acting way better. For future reference; if you do not have the money for the expensive vet bill, you can try your doctor for the amoxicillin and or tamiflu. Also, pedialyte is GREAT and you can give them children's dosage of Immodium AD for the diarrhea. (02/03/2008) By Betny RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home I had a chocolate lab who had parvo. I gave him 30 ml/hr of pedialyte, 30 ml/hr of gatorade, amoxicillin 500 mg twice a day, and chicken broth. After a couple of days I started switching off each hour between pedialyte and gatorade and soft dog food. The main thing is to make sure their keeping stuff down, he got better and is back to his old self today. (04/04/2008) By chris Parvaid for Parvo at Home Vets can be as expensive as human doctors these days, where I live NONE take payments and they charge top dollar and we don't have any low cost clinics within 250 miles. We got two pups, a friend took another 2 pups, and her son took 2 pups - all from the same litter. All pups got sick with symptoms similar to parvo. No diagnosis was made but these pups were close to death's door. After 6 hours of giving a watery mix of pedialyte and canned pumpkin (not pie mix) - 4 teaspoons every half hour - they were up and playing, by the next day they were completely normal. Please check out a product called Parvaid. Do a search online. I know it's too late for this pup but others doing searches will read this info too. (05/13/2008) By Terry Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home I had 2 puppies that came down with Parvo. My husband told me that the animal shelters would take care of them and that I needed to call as soon as possible so that they had a better chance. I called and after they took my dogs they told me that 5 out of 10 times (no matter if you go to a vet or not) puppies die from parvo. Not two days after my other dog came down with parvo (it was inevitable). I made the choice to fight the parvo. I do not have a very flexible budget so I tried to work with the only vet in town, they told me without 300 dollars down they would not do anything but put him to sleep. So now I am trying to find any help possible. I called the animal shelter and all they will do is pick it up and take it. I have tried to ask my personal doctor for something, anything, there seems to be no help in sight so now I must do whatever possible to save my puppy. Can you think of anything else to help me help my puppy? (05/21/2008) By SmallTownProblems RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home Parvaid is good. (07/10/2008) By sarah RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home Use Parvaid for sick parvo puppies or to preventatively treat for parvo. It saved all of our puppies, when the vet wanted $7200 to treat them and we just didn't have that kind of money. Here are two sites that have it and it works excellent: http://www.parvopuppy.com http://wolfcreekranch1.tripod.com/parvaid.html And many retail stores who carry it are here: http://wolfcreekranch1.tripod.com/retailers.html Hope your puppy is healthy and well again quickly! (10/24/2008) By healthy pets RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home I have a 2 month old french poodle. I went to the vet and she tried to charge $700 for a 3 day treatment and it would still be a 50-50 chance that she would live. So I took her to another one, she charged me $40 for a check up, some pills, and 2 other medicines. She told me to use the "bland diet" chicken with no skin or spices. Rice and chicken Gerber food. It's been a week, and my dog is doing way better! (11/21/2008) By ivette RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home I just found out my puppy has parvo and I could not afford the treatment for him, so I am doing the karo and pedialyte. I am also feeding him chicken soup. By the way, his name is Frenchie Ben Franklin and this is hard for me because I have 3 other dogs that grew up just fine but they are not with me. Thank God I would hate to be taking care of 4 dogs with parvo. I love my Frenchie and I hope he gets better soon. Thanks to all the people that have gone threw this, your advice is really helping me. Also, there are homemade herbal teas out there that can help as well. (12/03/2008) By I love my puppy! RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home You might want to contact your local ASPCA since parvo is very contagious and your puppy should be in isolation for sometimes 2-4 weeks. They also assist with hardship cases for sick animals. Good luck with your puppy. (01/15/2009) By rowinghome RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home My puppy has parvo, and the only thing that is helping him is 1/2 a raw egg every hour. He still couldn't hold it down for more than an hour, but after 3 to 4 hours he's doing better. I wish you the best. (03/08/2009) By cwbcollins RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home My pup has had parvo 7 days now and just pulling out. I used emetrol for babies that stops vomiting, you can find it at rite aid in the baby area. I just found out a feed store in cherry valley has penicillin and vitamins for less than $20.00 for both. Check out feed stores in your area. Good Luck. (03/09/2009) By cwbcollins Report Spam or Abuse Request: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home Archived on 01/25/2008 I have 1 puppy who has Parvo, he is at the vet hospital with an IV. Now I think his sister is getting it. I can't afford to have both of them in the hospital, so I am giving the one at home pediatric electrolyte so she won't get dehydrated and vitamins. I can get her to the vet in Mexacali in 2 more days. Do you think she will be ok until then? Patsi from El Centro, Calif Answers: RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home Sorry to hear about your pups! Parvo is a very serious disease. The vet would be the best place. If you hit the jump to feedback button on the page your question is on there are a few good tips in the related links. I went to one where it says raw eggs 3-4 times a day. Go look there and see if that can help you. Good Luck. My prayers are with you on this!!! (12/18/2007) By kay RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home My parents puppy got Parvo and they took him to the vet but she said it would be just as well at home as long as you can take care of it pretty much round the clock. I stayed with them for three days to help at night while they slept. Every half hour I have it a syringe of pedialite and every 2 or 3 hours I gave him a syringe of baby food. It took three days but he was fine afterwards. (12/18/2007) By micksgirl RE: Taking Care of a Puppy with Parvo at Home Parvo is a serious disease. I believe you also have to bleach down your home to get rid of it. If you cannot afford a vet, please contact local animal shelters (http://www.petfinder.org) and ask if they know of any free or discounted vet clinics. There are a number of these clinics in Chicago area so I assume there are some in CA. I pray your pups will make it through this. (12/20/2007) By Animal Lover Report Spam or Abuse