Parvo? Whats that?

The first time I fostered a puppy the rescue told me not to put it on the ground until I got her home, not expose her to any other dogs, and not put her on the floor when I took her to the vets. I was like "whats up with that?". The rescue explained that Parvo was going around and I needed to be very, very careful. Huh. I had previously adoped thru Griffin Pond, and brought home an 8 week old male puppy and I didn't get any kind of warning like that. Maybe because he was born there and fully utd on his shots and had already got a parvo shot at that point.

Anyway, after receiving my first rescue from a high kill shelter down south, I came home and looked up parvo on the internet. And WOW. Scary stuff this parvo. I would like to highlight the important points so everyone is aware of exactly what it is, who is at risk, and what you can do to prevent the spread of this deadly canine disease.


1. Parvo is NOT transmitted thru the air. It is only transmitted thru the feces of an infected dog.
2. Parvo is a hardy little bugger. The ONLY thing that kills it is CLOROX BLEACH.
3. The clorox has to be left on the infected area for TEN MINUTES to fully kill the virus.
4. You must disenfect not only the crate and any surfaces the infected pet has come in contact with, but also disenfect bowls, toys, clothing you wore while handling the pet AND YOUR YARD if the pet has defacated in it.
5. The signs of parvo include not eating or drinking, extreme lathargy, diahrrea that stinks to high heaven, and vomiting.
6. Puppies and unvaccinated dogs are at risk.
7. Death occurs from massive dehydration
8. A dog that successfully recovers from parvo generally remains contagious for up to three weeks, but it is possible they may remain contagious for up to six.
9. Untreated cases of parvo have a mortality rate approaching 91%. With aggressive therapy, survival rates may approach 80-95%.
10. It can take 7-14 days for an exposed dog to show symptoms of parvo.

So what can you do to help stop spread this deadly disease that is killing so many puppies?

VACCINATE!!!!!!!!!!!!
Vets reccomend vaccinating every 3-4 weeks until 16 weeks old, and then getting a booster every year.