The Canine Parvovirus, that is usually just referred to as Parvo, is a viral infection that attacks dogs (although other animals can also get it, including cats, ferrets, raccoons, and other small mammals, for instance).
Parvo treatment
There are two main forms of Parvo - cardiac and intestinal, and it is the intestinal form that's much more common.
Parvo Symptoms
The primary symptoms of Parvo are:
• not eating / loss of appetite
• lethargy / lack of 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, normally, this is not the first manifestation of Parvo - what you typically see first are the behavioural symptoms, for example losing interest in food, hesitant to play either with you or his favourite toys, and perhaps not drinking.
The diarrhea and vomiting then follow shortly thereafter.
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 exactly the same order.
You also need to realise that Parvo is not just a puppy virus - even adult dogs can get it, regardless of whether they’ve been vaccinated or not. (We know of one 14-year old dog that got Parvo, and that dog had been regularly vaccinated for the first 12 years of its life.)
Parvo Treatment
So, if 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, as the one thing you do not have with Parvo is 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 the lethargy, as these are really good clues that something is seriously wrong. In the end, how many dogs do you know that turn their nose up at food?
So, what Canine Parvovirus treatment options do you have?
Most people will take their dog to the vet, as this is what people have been “trained” (or brainwashed) to complete, but this is what our thousands 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 probably be quoted a success rate of about 50%, which means your dog is equally as likely to die because it is to survive. A few vets goes as high as 80% (but not many), although some go as low as 20%.
• Vets’ Parvo treatment will consist of IV fluids (that is basically salty water), antibiotics (the side-effects which are often the same as Parvo, such as vomiting and diarrhea, that is clearly not what you would like), anti-emetics (more chemicals to supposedly assist in preventing vomiting, although vomiting more may be a side-effect), and they may even suggest (or insist on) blood transfusions (which are very costly, 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 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 can be treated successfully at home, without any specialised training, without any specialist equipment, and without having to stick needles into your sick pet.
Here is what we would expect with a decent 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), based 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 an extremely nasty virus, and it’s getting worse all the time. Even if you only suspect your pet might have been infected (because 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 if 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) do 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 remedies, we obviously would recommend the Parvo treatment at home option - it’s safe, effective, affordable, and you won’t be making a bad situation worse by filling your sick pet track of chemicals (and all of their consequent side-effects).
Concerning the Authors
Rae & Mark happen to be running ParvoBuster (part of Friends Of The Planet, Inc.) since 2007, and during that time have amassed an abundance of knowledge and experience in successfully treating Parvo at home (4,251 dogs and counting), helping pet owners both in the USA as well as in many other countries all over the world.
Parvo treatment
