Dog owners should be on the lookout, as a parvo outbreak has been reported in Marana, along with a n increase in respiratory diseases in dogs at the Pima County animal shelter, officials said Friday.
In a post on its Facebook page, Twin Peaks Veterinary Center said 20 dogs have been recently treated for parvo, many of which have died.
The owners of a dog that was diagnosed Thursday said they’d visited the Crossroads at Silverbell Dog Park, at North Silverbell and North Cortaro roads. The town of Marana was notified and a sign warning owners was seen posted at the park Friday night.
Signs of parvo include lethargy, loss of appetite, vomiting and diarrhea. Owners who notice any of these symptoms are advised to have their dog examined by a vet, the post said.
Some of the dogs treated at Twin Peaks have been adults that were vaccinated. The center recommends that owners don’t risk taking dogs to places they could be exposed, including dog parks and pet stores.
Pima Animal Care Center had a slow progression of life-threatening respiratory illnesses in shelter dogs over the past several weeks, which recently became an abrupt spike, said José Ocaño, executive director of operations for the shelter.
Lab results are pending for more than a dozen dogs, but preliminary results show that some have distemper virus, some have a respiratory bacteria known as strep zoo, and others have both. Either of the conditions can be fatal to dogs, Ocaño said.
There is no vaccine for strep zoo, but it can be treated with antibiotics. For the next several weeks, every dog at PACC, and all incoming dogs, will be treated for the conditions. Dogs older than four weeks are vaccinated for distemper and other pathogens upon intake.
“Many shelter dogs can experience some sort of mild respiratory disease with symptoms such as, mild clear nasal and eye discharge, mild coughing and some decrease in activity,” PACC’s director of veterinary services, Jennifer Wilcox, wrote in a disclosure statement to new owners.
More severe respiratory symptoms can include, decrease in activity, lack of appetite, yellow or green nasal discharge, severe cough and increased respiratory rate while at rest. Owners who observe these symptoms should take the dog to the vet for follow-up care.
Beginning Saturday, all adopted shelter dogs were sent home with one week’s worth of prophylactic antibiotics and the disclosure, Wilcox said.
