some urgent advice needed please

[fostermum]

Hi,

very new to this and sorry for asking for help on my first post but I will explain my situation

I am 22 and I have recently fostered two puppies from a resuce center in spain.

My spanish is not great and the guy who runs the centre wasnt there so I had to try my best to speak to the spanish lady regarding the puppy i offered to foster.

The puppy is a cross breed dalmataion (thats what it looks like) and I was told about 4-5 weeks old.

as i was leaving the centre a lady came into the centre with a (7-8 week )puppy in her hand (speaking in spanish) that she dcouldnt keep him anymore the other woman looked at me and I said yes i would foster him too (although the centre is good for what it does I couldnt handle seeing a puppy going into the centre that i could save) so i took both home with me. this is the first time I have fostered.

i have had them for nearly about 10 days now and everything has been going fine. I went to the vets about 5 days ago and got them flea stuff and worm stuff which I was told by vet i could give to the puppies so I know that is no problem

However yesterday the baby started coughing not alot but i thought maybe he had a furball however he has carried on today also which I was going to take him to the vets in the morning (its 3am where i am at the minute) however I work night shifts and am at work at the moment. my flat mate is at home and has told me that the baby has very watery diarohea im very concerned as I was told that a few weeks ago the rescue centre had an outbreak of parvo.

however i have been looking at sites about this and he is not lathargiv or loss of appetite at all! anything but lathargic they have both settled in great and seem very content and been playing together with me all day.

I should also mention i unfortunatley had to change the dry puppy food brand as the spanish shop had sold out of the one i had originally bought them. however i am worried again as I didn't realise that at 4-5 weeks you shouldn't be giving them dry food only. (all i have done tonight is look up stuff on internet)


I am taking the puppy straight to the vets at 8am when i finish work but can anyone give me some advice as to what i can get my flat mate to do now to check he is ok. I am so scared I have done something wrong. any advice would be appreciated.

[davet]

in my old old canine medicine text book, the very first opening sentance of distermper is....the first symptons of distemper is a cough...with the cough and the diarrhia i suspect this is what it is,,and this is a 4'000 mile away diagnosis..it could be a problem but wait untill you have a proper diagnosis before any conclusions are made.....All i can do is wish you luck and hope i am wrong....

[fostermum]

thank you for your reply I am slightly confused though I have looked distemper up on google as was not aware of what it was i looked on http://www.animalhealthchannel.com/distemper/ sorry if im not allowed to post links

this says symptoms of

Conjunctivitis (discharge from the eye)
Diarrhea
Fever (usually present but unnoticed)
Pneumonia (cough, labored breathing)
Rhinitis (runny nose)
Vomiting


I'm sorry if i am sounding stupid but need to have as much information as possible before i go to the vets as I need to have it translated to spanish before i go. does that mean they will have all of those symptons or that they may have one or two or even maybe just one?

thanks

Kelly

[k9Karen]

It sounds to me like you are doing everything you can to do the right thing! You can not blame yourself if one of the puppies picked up an infection before you brought him/her home. Going to the vet is the right thing to do. Follow your vet's advice, including any advice on proper diet. If it is the food change, that will be an easy fix. I wish you the best of luck.

Please -Keep us posted.

[fostermum]

thank you for your kind words

i will keep you posted on the results hopefully i am over reacting and its the food its just the coughing is a bit worrying. He is however not lathargic at all and anything but lathargic and has not lost his appetite either so hopefully its just him worrying his foster mum

[Traci]

The incubation period for parvo is around 7-10 days, so if the shelter had an outbreak, you had better get both pups tested for parvo immediately. A snap test hopefully is available to your vet. Did either of the pups get a first vaccination puppy series? (unlikely, given their ages, but just asking).

Your vet can also test for distemper using a CBC, I strongly suggest you get both pups tested for this as well. The watery diarrhea is very very concerning, this can lead to severe dehydration which could be fatal in a young pup. Watery diarrhea can be a symptom of either parvo or distemper, as the conditions progress, blood is usually present. Vomiting, watery/bloody diarrhea, anorexia, fever and lethargy are the most common signs of either condition and must be treated immediately and agressively by your vet.

What was the flea product your vet gave you, was it oral, topical or an injection? You should know that most appropriate flea medications and applications should not be given to puppies under 8-12 weeks, depending on the product and the manufacturer. Please check with your vet about this, it's important to know the product was appropriate for your pups, given their young ages.

Get both pups into your vet immediately, they need to be tested and probably treated for dehydration at the very least. Nutritional needs can be discussed with your vet then.

I'm curious about a few things: why does the shelter allow pups to be adopted before they are 12 weeks of age? Anything younger is much too young. Don't they have them examined, vaccinated, and a spay/neuter certificate issued at the time of adoption? If you know, what steps did they take to handle the parvo outbreak? Was a vet consulted and were the shelter dogs treated appropriately?

Given what you've mentioned of this shelter, it's imperative your pups are examined, tested, etc immediately....don't wait on this.

[k9Karen]

thank you for your kind words

i will keep you posted on the results hopefully i am over reacting and its the food its just the coughing is a bit worrying. He is however not lathargic at all and anything but lathargic and has not lost his appetite either so hopefully its just him worrying his foster mum

Hopefully you are right and it isn't anything major, but don't wait until either lethargy or loss of appetite occur. Dogs, even tiny pups, can be very resilient and may not show any of these until their condition is very advanced, and by then it may be too late to prevent serious consequences and high vet bills. Early treatment is the key to a successful outcome in so many conditions. You don't want this condition to get worse or to spread to the other pup. Keep that vet appointment!

[fostermum]

Hi,

Just wanted to thank you for your posts and update you on what happened. I haven't been able to get to a pc for a while hence the delay. I took my pups to the vets and it turned out it was just a mild kennel cough he gave me some antibiotics (amoxycillin) i think i cant be too sure of correct name as it is in spanish and my spanish isnt too good. The vets checked both of them out and said that they were going to be fine I had to give them thier medicine then again 12 hours later. Then again in 10 days then take them back to get thier injections as hecouldnt give them then as they had this cough. Apparently the sloopy stools were due to the food change.

In answer to Traci, I haven't actually adopted these pups I am simply fostering them until homes are found these puppies are abandoned dogs which would probably not survive very long in the rescue kennels, I'm not sure what rescue centres in US are like but the part of spain I live in is not a very rich part and the kennels are ok for what they do simply dont have the money or resources to care for puppies at such a young age hence why they depend on foster carers. I agree with you that they should of given me a bit more advice or maybe im at fault for not taking a spanish speaker with me. However the pups are now fine and will hopefully be given to a stable home soon. in the meantime they are with me

thanks again

Kelly

just wanted to add I did take both pups to the vets straight away when i had finished work about 4 hours after I wrote the original post, there was no way i could of left it i know you have to get these things checked up immediatly

[Traci]

I'm glad to hear both pups were checked by your vet and seem fine. But, I would encourage you to monitor them both closely, especially since the shelter had a parvo outbreak, you really have to watch for that. If they go back to the shelter, they could be at risk again, especially being so young and having no immunity. Hopefully the shelter took steps to contain the outbreak and quarantined, disinfected the premises appropriately. But do watch the pups closely.

[k9Karen]

So glad things are looking good. I wish you the best of luck getting these little guys through their illness so they will be healthy and happy when they are able to be adopted.