OK this is going to take a bit to explain so please bare with me :/
Tuesday, we pulled 8 puppies from death row that were scheduled to go into the gas chamber. #1-6 were littermate brothers and sister boxer/GSD mixes. #7 was a little sheltie mix, and #8 was a chocolate lab. All were around 14 weeks old.
1-6 came in very underweight, scared, but active, bright eyed, and eating and drinking well. Noticed some vomitting when first taking out of the car but attirbuted it to car sickness.
7 and 8 were fat, happy, mach 5 with their fur on fire and eating and drinking everything in sight.
Thurs afternoon, #1-6 stools all became watery, biter metalic smelling (I instantly think of death in a cold dark room when I smell that smell..it smells like every animal control 'isolation' area where all the dogs are dying.) 1 puppy developed a mild fever and was very lethargic, 2 puppies began vomitting. Everyone was at least somewhat lethargic/depressed. Of course, like most rescuers the first instinct is PARVO OH GOD!!! so I immediatly began following even stricter quarentine procedures for all 8 puppies. Wed night, no one wanted to eat, but when I made "tea mash" (Pepermint tea, caro syrup, camomyle tea, pedialyte, beef stock, vit c, yogurt, ground up raw chicken and rice) I was able to get them all fed. They were drinking well, and we started them on antibiotics, and gave the two who were vommiting injected antibiotics, pepto, and subq fluids. I then ordered Parvaid since I was out and I have always *Sworn* by it.
Friday morning #1-6 are all pooping, but all their stools are solid/mushy, no where near parvo poop. they are active and playing. Fever is completely gone. Appetite is back and they are eating chicken, rice and puppy food eagerly, and drinking water/pedialyte. One puppy is still vomitting some but not much.
Fri afternoon #7 begins vomitting and gets a fever, we up his dosage (we had him on preventative dosage before) and start treating him more aggressively. Now I am beginning to wonder if it's not Parvo, as I have never seen parvo dogs not with bloody/metalic/watery loose stools (They all have mildly soft stools but still formed at this point) Then... puppies 1-8 ALL start sneezing.
Fri late evening #8 gets hit, and begins vomitting regularly and goes off food and becomes listless with mild fever. Increase her dosage and begin subq fluids.
So the rate of symptoms are:
Vomitting FIRST
Letheragy/Depression
No appetite
Loose stools (very light colored but not 'jelly' or bloody)
Fever goes away, appetite comes back, stools firm a bit, and then everyone is sneezing.
At this point I am thinking not Parvo, but maybe Giardia/Coccidia mixed with kennel cough? Those are all common enough infectious diseases found regularly in animal controls.
I won't get the results of their stool sample until monday morning as our shelter vet is out of town. They are still all on antibiotics and monitored fluid intake along with vitamins and extra proteins.
Does this sound like anything anyone recognizes? Has anyone seen Parvo with symptoms like this? We were all so sure it was Parvo until their stools firmed up and they are eating/drinking/playing on their own- I have never seen a parvo puppy this active.
Anyone have ideas?
