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Local Dog Owners Warned About Rapidly Spreading Contagious Virus Which Causes Sickness & Diarrhoea

Local dog owners are being alerted to an unidentified virus which is currently causing sickness, diarrhoea and tiredness to their pets.

Cozy Kennels and Cattery have shared information about this mystery virus which is rapidly spreading across the Fylde Coast. They caution dog owners that this nasty, so far unidentified, contagious virus is going round at the moment and say that vets are putting out advice as the illness is spreading quickly.  They advise dog owners that they should try stay away from parks, avoid letting dogs drink from outside water & puddles and say that a dog’s paws should be cleaned after every walk in case they’ve walked in the virus then catch it when cleaning themselves. They also add that part of the problem is that it’s hard to fully clean up after dogs when they have diarrhoea, and so other dogs naturally sniff and that’s how it spreads.

Cozy Kennels & Cattery share this advice is from a vet:

‘Vets are reporting higher than usual occurrence of gastroenteritis in dogs which is fitting with a wider phenomenon as reported by The Small Animal Veterinary Surveillance Network (SAVSNET). So far we have found that the cases seen, whilst clearly being poorly, have responded well to treatment.

The British Veterinary Association (BVA) advise that with prompt veterinary treatment almost all dogs make a full recovery from this uncommonly violent gastric bug.

How Is This Vomiting Bug Different?

According to Vet Dr Danielle Greenberg of SAVSNET, this vomiting bug is unusual due to:

  • Prolific vomiting of 5 or more episodes in a 12 hour period which can stop for a period (such as overnight) and then starts again
  • Dogs are often unable to keep water down at peak vomiting stage
  • Anorexia and lethargy for 2-5 days
  • Diarrhoea: Most dogs have ‘gravy-like’ diarrhoea
  • Full recovery can take 5-10 days

What We Know So Far:

  • This outbreak is affecting areas across the Midlands, Wales, the North of England and Northern Ireland
  • The illness is most likely a virus but has not yet been identified.
  • Seems to be dog-specific, thankfully humans don’t appear to be at risk.
  • This is not caused by Parvo or Salmonella’

Meanwhile, the Veterinary Health Centre in St Anne’s, who are currently seeing lots of dogs with this virus, give this advice:

‘Fasting – withholding food gives the guts a rest and can make your pet feel better. Please do not fast very young, very old, or very ill animals. Fasting only helps dogs and cats and will not be beneficial to other species, and in some (like rabbits) it is very dangerous to withhold food

Bland Diet – boiled chicken, boiled fish, scrambled egg, and bland carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, and potatoes should go down without too much of a fuss and gently pass through, making your pet feel better. Remember to feed little and often to make sure it is going in ok

Rest – just like us, our pets just want to relax when they are feeling under par. Avoid long walks, and noisy activities and just let them sleep it off as best they can

Probotics – are available without prescription and can help to replace all the good bacteria, speeding up recovery

Of course, you may contact us at any point for advice if you are unsure on 01253 729309 but there are instances where diarrhoea may need veterinary intervention:

  • if it is severe, very watery, or there is a very large amount
  • if there is blood or mucus in it
  • if it is ongoing, that is, if it lasts longer than 1-2 days
  • if your pet is very young or very old
  • if your pet is also vomiting
  • if your pet is taking any non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medication (NSAIDs)
  • if your pet is very painful when touched, or is standing with their front legs down on the floor (known as ‘praying’) – this can mean your pet is in pain ‘

One Response

  1. My small dog has been I’ll for 2 weeks with this virus my vet did blood test etc and came back Pancreatitis, hopefully he’s now on the road to recovery

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