Home: Dog & Puppy Health: Canine Distemper, Parvo, Kennel Cough,...:
Distemper-----Pls Help

rajay Novice May 22, 2007, 9:43 PM Views: 21892 Distemper-----Pls Help Hi There I have a 7 months old puppy who's suffering from distemper. According t to my vet it's quiet serious as he's already having muscles twitching. As per my knowledge there is no cure, but is there some medication that can help him?? We are trying antibiotics which seem to be not very helpful. Is there anything else that can be done to help him?? He is family and I will not want to act as "GOD" by deciding to put him to sleep. A professional’s advise on this matter will highly appreciated

reneewong Member Dec 28, 2007, 6:18 AM Views: 20556 Re: [rajay] Distemper-----Pls Help You're right, there's no cure for distemper. The only thing you can do is to boost the immune system so that the dog's own immune system can try to overcome the virus. The prognosis for young dogs is not very good though. You can only treat the secondary symptoms - like putting vitamin e oil on her nose to stop it from cracking because it's so dry from the snot, keeping her eyes and nose clear of discharge, buying ointment to put on her paws so they don't harden. Also, you should give her high protein foods because she will probably lose her apetite - you may need to put her on an iv drip and even 'force' her to hydrate by squirting water in her mouth with a needle-less syringe. Don't bathe her because she will catch a cold. Keep her warm and make sure she is out of direct sunlight (bright lights are painful for dogs with distemper) Some online sources recommend "Transfer Factor" which is sold by a local MLM here - but it is expensive at $250 odd a bottle . And there's no scientific study that it is effective, only anecdotal evidence on the internet. There is one Vet in the States who is apparently successfully treating distemper, but I doubt you can get hold of his vaccine here in Malaysia. Distemper is so sad. I just lost my own dog to it today, so I know how you feel. I'm really sorry you're going through it. And yes, the muscle twitching is an indicator that the virus has probably entered the spinal cord / brain, which is the 2nd stage of distemper and difficult to treat. There's still hope though...

rajay Novice Dec 31, 2007, 8:01 PM Views: 20545 Re: [reneewong] Distemper-----Pls Help Hi Renee Thank you for your reply. Your reply was very educational, but I believe it was too late. I have put my dog to sleep as he had epilepsy. I put him down around late July this year. I'm very sorry to hear abt your lost as well. I know how if feels when you loose a puppy. My wife and I had sleepless night. We really missed him a lot. I spent abt Rm 500-Rm 800 just within 1 week to save him but it was to late. Anyway you just hang in there and clean your hse compound with Clorox and you should be able to have another puppy within a week or two. I did the same. Ppl told me that I can't have a dog for month as the Distemper virus will still be around. I consulted my vet and we did as said. But before you take the new puppy home I suggest that you take it to a vet and get it vaccinated. If you need to discuss further feel free to call me at 012 608 6606. Rgds Raj