test, a CBC to assess the white blood cell count is helpful in predicting the severity of the disease.
The fenbendazole suspension for large animals is a 10% solution. This calculates to be 1 cc per 4 pounds of body weight for a dog. The paste should not be substituted. If the dam had parasites as a puppy or at any time prior to the breeding, the stress of pregnancy and lactation will reactivate the encysted worms that are hiding in her muscle tissue, and they will migrate. Roundworms will migrate from the muscles though the placentas and into the pups. Hookworms will migrate from the muscles and into the mammary glands, to be ingested by the pups. By following this protocol, the pups will not be infected with worms. Waiting until the pups have a positive stool sample is too late – then you are playing catch up, treating puppies that are already debilitated. There is no preventive treatment available for giardia and coccidia. Fenbendazole for five days is the safest treatment for giardia. Albon is the safest treatment for coccidia. Pups with worms (roundworms, hookworms, and whipworms) as well as coccidia and giardia are more vulnerable to developing parvovirus, coronavirus, distemper virus, and leptospirosis if they are stressed with worms and if they have these parasites causing the cells in the intestines to be inflamed or altered. Tests are now available at several l Reference
Should you lose one or more puppies to suspected parvovirus, testing at a veterinary referral diagnostic lab is recommended. These labs can run more extensive tests than a veterinary practice. Your local veterinary professionals can help you submit samples to a lab. Determining the reason for lost pups is essential in moving forward with preventing future puppy losses. Can I Change My Puppies Food and Water? Any water or diet change can upset the puppy’s gut and gut bacteria. Any gut upset can lead to increased likelihood of picking up parvovirus and other infectious diseases. To minimize water changes, ask puppy buyers to bring along a clean container for you to send a few days of water along with them. To minimize food changes, send some of your recommended food along or have the puppy buyer pre-purchase the food you are feeding. Puppy Parasites Other conditions in the puppy’s gut that cause the puppy to be more vulnerable to these viruses – usually inadequate parasite control. There are two approaches to parasite control:
1. Prevent puppy parasites by managing the dam The most effective process is to use fenbendazole on the dam from the last three weeks of pregnancy through the first two weeks of lactation. That is five straight weeks. This is NOT what the label says – it says three days. The dose should be 50 mg/kg once a day. The dams won’t like the taste and administration of this drug at this dosage protocol. However, the improved health of the pups will make the time, cost, and effort worth it. For large breed dogs, this may cost about $100 per pregnancy. This medication comes in granules for dogs.
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