Upper Coomera Gold Coast Parvo

[Greyt]

Bulletin Link

VETS have issued a warning over the killer disease parvovirus, which has reportedly killed seven dogs in one Gold Coast street.

The only prevention against parvovirus is vaccination.

Best Friends Rescue, a non-profit group dedicated to saving the lives of dogs and cats on the Gold Coast, said news of the outbreak at Upper Coomera should concern all dog owners in the city.

President Linda Richards said parvovirus was a "nasty, horrible disease" and puppies were the most vulnerable.

Have your say on the feedback form below "It spreads so quickly dogs can become dangerously sick within hours and puppies rarely survive," she said.

"Vaccination is the key but once your dog or puppy is vaccinated you must continue to quarantine them for 14 days no dog parks, no walking.

"The virus stays in the environment for up to 12 months. You need a highly concentrated bleach to get rid of it."

Vetcall Ashmore vet Mark Kropp said the virus was prevalent in suburbs where there were more stray dogs, which were not vaccinated .

"The virus comes from unvaccinated dogs," he said.

"Faeces of infected dogs are ingested by other dogs who are not vaccinated and it goes straight to their guts and invades the intestinal wall."

Your Say

"Is the fact that dogs are unvaccinated and the number of strays a reflection of the socio economics of the Coomera and Upper Coomera area. I live in Upper Coomera so is extremely concerning for me despite having a fully vaccinated dog. So many dogs dying in the same street is also very concerning. There is clearly a link with an infected animal. Vaccinate your pets for around $80 for the peace mind and help elimate the parvovirus."<br style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; ">Jason

Dr Kropp said three vaccinations at an early age would virtually protect dogs from contracting the virus.

"Dog owners should not be complacent but stop the spread of the disease through vaccinations," he said.

Symptoms include lethargy, loss of appetite, vomiting, fever and diarrhoea that usually contains blood.

[Tralee]

Hi Greyt. :)

I saw parvo first hand out a Narrabri a few years ago.

A Golden Retriever had survived it but was practically unrecognisable as a GR.

Horrible symptoms.

Blood soaked vomit and diarrhoea rocket out of both ends.

[german_shep_fan]

Why in this day and age is parvo even making a comeback? Is it because ppl have stopped vaccinating their dogs

[Crisovar]

Parvo has always been a problem, it has never been eradicated.

A lot of cases after the flooding last year.

[german_shep_fan]

Parvo has always been a problem, it has never been eradicated.

A lot of cases after the flooding last year.

thats sad. I was paranoid before i got my young girl fully vacc. I guess though even with vacc they can still be at a slight risk

I know at our training school a few yrs ago head trainer was warning of an outbreak around the place but she can exaggerate sometimes so i took it with a grain of salt...

[Jumabaar]

7 dogs on one street all unvaccinated?? I would want to be doing more investigation here!!

Could it be a new strain that the vaccine is not protecting against?

Could it not be parvo?

Could they have been owned by the same family (and thus all unvaccinated)?

Could they have all been related and had an immune dysfunction that made them more susceptible??

I know Parvo is out there but that news story seems strange to me.

[ellazpupz]

7 dogs on one street all unvaccinated?? I would want to be doing more investigation here!!

Could it be a new strain that the vaccine is not protecting against?

Could it not be parvo?

Could they have been owned by the same family (and thus all unvaccinated)?

Could they have all been related and had an immune dysfunction that made them more susceptible??

I know Parvo is out there but that news story seems strange to me.

Agreed! More facts are needed to fully understand this story.

[Crisovar]

It is totally feasible, we frequently see hot spots of Parvo, there is a large percentage of unvaccinated animals in the community.

Usually victims are young animals with no or incomplete vaccination history. Areas where unvaccinated animals are not contained and are free to wander the street are high risk.

[HugUrPup]

The vaccine isn't 100% effective in preventing parvo anyway.

[Jumabaar]

It is totally feasible, we frequently see hot spots of Parvo, there is a large percentage of unvaccinated animals in the community.

Usually victims are young animals with no or incomplete vaccination history. Areas where unvaccinated animals are not contained and are free to wander the street are high risk.

I know- its just that stories like this can absolutely freak people out, even if their dogs are vaccinated. It would just have been nice for them to have said 7 unvaccinated dogs dead in one street....

[experiencedfun]

I lost 9 out of 10 puppies in a litter to parvo. I never want to smell that smell again OMG it makes me sick just remembering. All my dogs were vaccinated but I had people come to look at the puppies and it wasnt until mine were sick two weeks later that they told me they had been to a couple of other places on the way to my place and at one property there were some sick dogs. I dont know how many times I asked people coming not to go anywhere else before coming to my place. You can only be so careful....

[sausy.dog]

The vaccine isn't 100% effective in preventing parvo anyway.

No vaccine is 100% effective against any disease but if the majority of the population are vaccinated then there is less chance of the dogs that don't respond to the vaccination of coming into contact with the disease.