Girada

[msjpk]

Poor Lou, I suspected he had a parasite. Waiting for result but I am certain. This his 3rd time, He has been treated with the powdered stuff you put in kibble. Now Vet seems to think we should use an antibiotic.. Anybody else ever have this reocurring pariasite!

[tbhounds]

Sounds like you used panacur in the past and now your vet is suggesting metronidazole as an option now. That's certainly a responsible approach.

[greysmom]

He must be getting into something in the yard or out on walks. If he keeps picking it up you might try a stoo guard with a muzzle, just to keep his nose out of things. Of course, if it's in water, he could still get at it.

[3greytjoys]

Yes, Giardia is not uncommon in new fosters, or other dogs. Dogs get Giardia easily from raw or under-cooked meats, or if allowed to drink water from bird baths, garden fountains, creeks, lakes, rain puddles, even outdoor fresh water bowls that aren't cleaned and changed regularly.

 

A previous dog (different breed) was infected during a weekend vacation while swimming at a beach in a very large, clear lake (since dogs intake water while swimming). Took a long time to treat successfully.

 

One of our adopted hounds arrived with a heavy infestation (horrible smelly diarrhea). Giardia can be difficult to fully eliminate both from the dog and from his/her environment since it can live for weeks/months on ground. We were careful to clean up hound's stools instantly, and scrape up every little bit so it didn't infect the garden soil. Some people carry newspaper or large paper plates to help capture stool messes during walks. We added a thick layer of tumbled playground bark into the hounds' potty yard, so every bit of stool can be removed easily (with playground bark) before it touches dirt.

 

Agree to keep treating per your vet's plan as long as it takes, and repeat fecal tests to confirm successful treatment.

 

Here's a link to Center for Disease Control for Giardia in pets:

http://www.cdc.gov/parasites/giardia/prevention-control-pets.html

 

Good luck with Lou.

Edited March 25, 2016 by 3greytjoys

[msjpk]

thanks so much for all the info.

[Mercsmom]

I traced mine (that is, Mercury's) to feral cats on campus. I didn't realize what he was sniffing on the ground until it was too late.

A full course of metronidazole (a.k.a. Flagyl) worked. You might consider a probiotic to undo the damage of the antibiotic (same concept as a human eating yogurt when prescribed antibiotics).

[dixidoll]

I was told you have to be careful because you can get Giardia from the poo. Cleaning or,touching it accidently.

[msjpk]

It seems that the antibiotic is not doing the trick. I have him back on Panacur. Paws crossed.

[sobesmom]

We've never dealt with that, but we had an issue with hookworm that took FOREVER to get rid of a few years ago. One of the fosters brought it in, and it took FOREVER to get rid of. We'd get clean stool samples then 2 months later- boom - back. And yes, we tried to do everything "by the book". I actually think it was a hard winter that finally killed off the nasties.