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Comment by Katie MacCallon on August 21, 2011 at 5:18pm

Thanks again for all the support. Roscoe passed away this morning, with both mom and dad by his side. He is on the Rainbow Bridge now. Our hearts are broken but we know that he is without pain now. Thanks to all :)

Katie, Derek and our little angel Roscoe.

Comment by Sam, Gregg & Poopdeck on August 21, 2011 at 4:01pm

no advise,but we are all rooting for Roscoe as well! Good Luck and we send our best wishes, (even the cat) keep us informed.

Comment by Elizabeth on August 21, 2011 at 9:19am

Katie, thanks for the update; sounds like your vet is on top of it all. To answer your boyfriend's question, my pup wasn't interested in taking food for four days. He was force fed by the vet (liquid food in a syringe) on the 3rd and 4th days. Then all of a sudden on night five, he decided to inhale some canned puppy food.

 

Your vet is right that catching it early (explaining the first negative test result) usually means it will get worse. Getting "worse" can vary from just constant lethargia and moaning to that, plus constant vomiting and horrible, loose BMs. My puppy was, thankfully, only lethargic and pitiful. He also salivated constantly from nausea. :( It was heartbreaking (as I can only imagine it is for you and little Roscoe). 

 

Once the virus was kicked, however, recovery was rapid; he was back to his happy puppy self in a couple days.

 

All the best to you this week. And if you have any other questions, I'm all ears (because I know how overwhelming the internet can be).  

Comment by Jane Christensen on August 21, 2011 at 7:57am

If I am reading this correctly and he is taking a mouthful or 2 once in awhile....this is good. I am assuming it is canned?  I would try warming it just a few seconds so that it is at least lukewarm but not too hot. Offer it more often? Sorry I don't have any other ideas but if he's getting a little bit as often as you can...it's a start. Good luck!

Comment by Natalie, Lance &Tucker on August 21, 2011 at 2:01am

I don't have any advice, but it sounds like you have gotten wonderful advice.  I wanted to let you know we are thinking of Roscoe and praying he makes a fully recovery.  So sorry he is sick.  Looking forward to the day you can post that he is all better.

Comment by Katie MacCallon on August 21, 2011 at 1:30am

Thanks to all for the advice and well wishes. Derek and I are so grateful for all of your support.

Nancy - Roscoe is 10 1/2 weeks old. He has already gotten 2 of the 3 parvo prevention shots. He just wasn't old enough for that vital third one. The vet gave us a take home IV, pills to settle his stomach, and a prescription puppy food to mix with pedialyte to make into a liquid diet. The IVs are working well to keep him semi-hydrated (I think), but we can't get him to take to any of the food. Not even if we try to force it with a syringe (thanks for the idea Stephanie!!). We decided to stop the feeding tonight, we will try again in the early morning. Thanks so much for your support Nancy, we are appreciative beyond words.

Elizabeth - Thank you so much for the extra information! Parvo is all around the internet, but it all says the same, bland, not-too-helpful facts. It is so great to hear about the success stories about the virus, they help us keep the faith. Our vet did do a check for the parasites, and it came back negative (thank goodness), so we know that isn't hurting Roscoe. As I mentioned with Nancy, the vet sent us home with stuff to get through the weekend, and now we just have to wait it out with our little one. The vet also mentioned that we caught it early, so it was going to get worse before it got better. That we were ready for, but we don't know how to tell when getting worse gets too worse....I don't know if that makes sense, but that is the best way I have to describe it. Any helpful thoughts on that point? Derek is curious as to how long your pup actually went without eating? As, again, I mentioned to Nancy, we tried tonight with no success. Maybe a mouthful or two tops. Any additional thoughts or tips would be graciously taken if you have anymore tidbits to help us through. We can not thank you enough for the knowledge you have already shared.

Again, thanks to all for ANY advice and/or tips you may have. No fact is too little to share.

Katie, Derek, and Roscoe

Comment by Judith Andre on August 21, 2011 at 12:48am

I hate seeing people come to the dog park with puppies that are obviously not old enough to have had all their puppy Parvo shots, but I see it all the time.  The few times I have said anything to the owners about it not being a good idea and how my friend's puppy got Parvo even though he had had his first puppy shot, they look at me like I'm from Mars so I gave up saying anything.

Comment by Jane Christensen on August 20, 2011 at 8:33pm

So sorry you both have to go through this! Hope he's feeling better soon!

Comment by Elizabeth on August 20, 2011 at 3:10pm

I am so sorry about Roscoe. :( I, also, have lived through a puppy parvo infection - he survived, but it was a looooong, hard week.

 

Parvovirus actually attacks the lining of the stomach (upper GI tract), eating through it like acid and leaving it horribly enflamed and excrutiatingly painful for the dog. That's why your guy isn't eating. The most important thing - like others have said - is to keep him hydrated and warm. (In my case, we opted to hospitalize our puppy 24*7 so that he could receive IV fluids and meds; however, I understand that this option is cost-prohibitive for many people.) That said, I hope that your vet thoroughly explained to you the steps you will need to take at home to ensure Roscoe has a fighting chance. 

 

Did the vet also test him for intestinal parasites? Parvo symptoms are triggered by stress (i.e. puppy adjusting to a new environment) that can be aggravated by a parasite. If Roscoe has a parasite (in addition to parvo), it is imperative that he be treated for that. He also needs to remain on antibiotics (to fight secondary infection) and might benefit from pain meds to help soothe his little tummy. Since he can't keep food down, these meds need to be given through an IV.

 

My puppy (we were told) had a mild case and still went four days and nights without wanting to touch food or drink on his own. The vet actually force fed him a liquid diet on about the third day (to get his gut moving). On the fifth day, he went for some canned puppy food like it was the yummiest thing he'd ever eaten, kept it down and that was the end of his parvo. 

 

I'm not trying to scare you, especially since I don't have a clue what your vet told you about parvo or how to care for Roscoe at home, I just know first hand how awful and how serious this can be. Hopefully, your guy has a mild case and some immunity left from his mother's milk.  There is, unfortunately, NO WAY to know that until the disease takes its course. Just make sure you watch him at ALL times, which includes taking his temperature to ensure he's not burning up with fever.

 

Again, I am SO sorry about your little boy and I hope (hope, hope) that he stabilizes and beats that evil puppy disease quickly.

Comment by Donna and Lilly on August 20, 2011 at 2:29pm

Water and rest!  Lilly and I are rooting for you Roscoe!

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