# Puppy with giardia?



## 2pyrs&aGolden (Jan 17, 2011)

Hello! I'm new here, thanks to an unplanned addition to our family.  We got Simon in early December when he was 11 weeks old, and found out a couple days later that a stool sample I took to the vet showed that he had giardia.

He's been treated with panacur 3 times, and now, about 10 days after his last treatment, he's showing signs of having loose stools again. AND...this poor little guy has The Worst Gas I've never had the misfortune to experience. It's truly awful. He has loose stools (but I've never noticed blood in them) and sleeps a fair bit. He's otherwise alert and wonderful and an absolute dream of a pup, but I'm despairing of ever allowing him to go into my backyard when my two Great Pyrs go out to play (Simon is only allowed out front - on and off-leash, to play and to eliminate).

I've read a lot about giardia online in the last few weeks, and have decided to do a 5-day regimen, then a 10-day break followed by a second 5-day regimen of panacur, but would like to combine with probiotics and maybe MSM. I've been adding pumpkin to his dry kibble (Canidae), with once-daily small scoops of premium quality wet food added. He gets other healthy treats, too, including fresh fruit (apples, bananas, and occasionally, clementines). He's a bit small for his age (17 weeks, 24 lbs), which may be attributable to the giardia, although his mom was small, too. 

Has anyone used probiotics and MSM in a regimen to rid their pet of giardia? Does anyone have any other advice? I'm feeling a little desperate! My vet did not advise treating my other pets, but I'm not convinced that that's sound advice. Any thoughts on that?


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## Jax's Mom (Oct 16, 2009)

I had a foster puppy this past summer that was diagnosed with Giardia and we treated her as well as my 2 just to be safe. I do believe the "cysts" from the giardia (a parasite) come out in their feces, so any feces in the front yard that is eaten, (or maybe smelled and near the mouth) can become contagious. I wonder if your pup is getting re-infected. Although, I have to say that I have read alot that Giradia can be difficult to get rid of and oftern times it doesnt go completely away until the dog is a bit older (6 months or so) and develops a better immune system. Isn't Canidae high protein? I do think it is a rich food that might be making the diahrrea and gas worse. What was the pup on when you picked him up from the breeder? Might want to stick to that or just pur him on a less-rich food.


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## Ninde'Gold (Oct 21, 2006)

Tucker had giardia as a pup. It was bad. It took nearly 2 months for him to get back to normal. It's a really crappy disease (no pun intended).

I don't have much to suggest other than to keep up on the meds until it's clear.


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## Sally's Mom (Sep 20, 2010)

Probiotics from name companies like Nutramax work well. It is also important to wash the pup at least once/week during treatment as cysts will stick to the hair. Sometimes it helps to add metronidazole. On 01 VeterinaryPartner Home Page - VeterinaryPartner.com - a VIN company!, you can get more info on giardia.


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## LibertyME (Jan 6, 2007)

There is a lot of dietary variety going on for a puppy with a stressed system.
When mine are not well...I subscribe to K.I.S.S. ..one food that they have a history of doing well on...no treats...no toppers...no matter how healthy the snacks/toppers/treats may be...It just removes variables from the picture.


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## 2pyrs&aGolden (Jan 17, 2011)

Simon wasn't really from a breeder - just an engaged couple who thought it would be fun (?) to have their male and female GR have a litter of puppies. They weren't typical backyard breeders (we went to one of those, too...AKC registration "limited" because the breeding was between father and daughter - poor puppy couldn't walk!), but they also didn't take excellent care of the puppies. They had clean bedding, sleeping and playing areas (except who knows what was at the end of the acre on which they were allowed to play), but the food was a low quality brand (Pedigree). Canidae is not grain-free, but I have started adding canned pumpkin after reading that it will help (maybe just because it adds fiber?). 

Simon has been bathed pretty regularly, but I guess the risk still exists. I had also read to wipe their paws and perineal area after defecating - I've not been doing that, but if I were to do it, should I use baby wipes?

It sounds like perhaps in addition to everything else, perhaps some of this is dependent on a more mature immune system. So...two months to go, more or less? I only hope there's an end in sight!


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## BeauShel (May 20, 2007)

It might not be the giardia still. how long was she on the Canidae before she got sick? Some dogs cannot tolerate the "premium" foods like Canidae. There are alot of other great foods out there. I tried alot of those foods with my dog Bama thinking they would be the best for him but went back to what my breeder had him on ProPlan. Alot of show breeders feed their dogs ProPlan because it is a good quality food. And I would cut out the other foods like the apples, bananas etc. Try the elimination by taking stuff out of his diet to see if it improves his poop. Just because it says it is healthy doesnt mean he can tolerate it. In a couple of days, you should be able to see if that helps. If nothing works then I would go back to the vet and try something else.
This thread talks about the other type of med you can ask for to treat it
http://www.goldenretrieverforum.com...-physiology-breed-standard/89628-giardia.html


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## jasonkm (Feb 9, 2010)

Simon is about the same age Tex was when he got the giardia parasite. That was last March. Hopefully this will help, because we went about 2 months dealing with this.
First off, don't give him anything but his regular meals (no fruits, etc). Loose stools are not unnormal for puppies as they adapt to different foods. You want to make sure that nothing other than the giardia is causing the upset. Mind you with giardia the stools are normally very rancit and contains mucus. We switched Tex to the Fromm Chicken & Veg when this started as we noticed that so many on here used it. We wanted to make sure he was on a quality kibble so we wouldn't have to wonder if his food was affecting the situation. I'm not sure of the status of Candidae, but make sure the protein level is not too high (i think normal should be around 25-29%).
Most of the time when his stools were very loose, we would cut down his kibble and give him boiled rice and chicken mixed with some pure pumpkin. You want to keep his diet bland. For a while this was almost every second meal. We would still provide him with tasty bits of healthy freeze dry liver or chicken treats though for training purposes. And he would get peanut butter with his medicine mixed in. That was pretty much it for a while.

As for medications, Tex seemed to finally get over the parasite after a 7 day Panacur treatment. He started out on 3 day regiments, and also did the Metro for 10 days (1 a day), along with Prestora (probiotic). My Vet also tried him on an antibiotic that apparently has had success in the past. From all of the research I was doing at the time, I learned that a 7-10 day regiment of the Panacur had the highest success rate. I actually had to suggest this to our Vet after nothing else seemed to work. I asked if there would any harm in the longer regiment, and she indicated not. The 7 days seemed to work.
Around the same time I had read that virgin coconut oil could be successful killing and preventing one cell protazons(sp?) including giardia. I had starting giving Tex about a quarter teaspoon of that with each meal around the same time as the last Panacur treatment. Maybe it helped, not sure, but we still give him a little bit to this day. 
We also now give Tex Dogzymes digestive enhancer by Natures Farmacy, on a daily basis. This may be of some help to you right now. It is not very expensive compared to what the Vet's sell (Prestora, Flora Flora, etc). Check it out.
The only other thing I can add is concerning stool cleanup. I mixed about 30% bleach and 70% water in a spray bottle, and would spray the area I cleaned up after Tex did his business. Some say this would kill the cysts that may remain after cleanup, others say not. I figured it wouldn't hurt to try.

Trust me, my wife and I thought this was never going to end, and drive us insane! It can be frustrating, but hang in there!
A year from now you can be making my post.

J.


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