Disaster

Disaster hit the puppies this weekend. A week after receiving their first parvo vaccine, Tallulah started acting sick on Friday. By Saturday, it was pretty obvious she was seriously ill. I took all three of them in to the vet Saturday morning and Lulah tested positive for Parvo. Parvo, in case you don't know, is the nastiest, most devastating stuff a puppy can get, and it has a high mortality rate. It's super contagious, but the deal is, it's everywhere. It's at the dog park, it's at PETCO, PEtsmart, even your backyard-- Despite Parvo being everywhere--Most dogs don't get it because they are vaccinated. A good portion of puppies don't get it because they receive antibodies from their moms milk and she was vaccinated. In cases where you have an unvaccinated dog having pups; however (as was the case with these puppies) you have the double-whammy of a super-weak puppy immune system and no help from mama's antibodies. With as many litters of pups and foster dogs I've had over the years, I've never had a case of Parvo at our house. And pups haven't been anywhere, so we have NO idea where they got it from, unless it could have somehow happened when they went in to the vet's office last week. Who knows? It's a moot point when you're looking at a tiny puppy struggling for its life. Honestly, in the almost 10 years I've been doing rescue, I'm not sure I've seen anything worse than what I saw this morning. Tallulah lost. MJ and Tubs are hanging in there so far, but it isn't pretty. We're just trying to administer as much meds and IV fluids as we can and honestly, just holding them and hoping for the best. Keep these little guys in your thoughts. And please, please, please, vaccinate your pets!