# Possible giardia in puppy?



## minerva_deluthe (May 6, 2012)

Hi there,

So I met the family of a littermate of my 11 week old puppy, just by coincidence, today. They said he had Giardia when they got him (they bought him a week before I got my pup). Now I am wondering if my puppy may have it? She has had diarrhea off and on since I got her which I have attributed to a change in food, and to some rich chew toys. 

But now I am wondering if she may have Giardia? Obviously I will be calling my vet first thing Monday morning, and I'm sure they will want to do a stool sample. But I'm reading that tests are often negative? I wonder if I should ask that she be treated for it regardless of what the test says? Does treating for Giardia harm the dog if Giardia is not present?

Puppy is not extremely rambunctious, but has a decent amount of energy, and has a good appetite as well. 

Thanks for any information.


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## LuvShepherds (May 27, 2012)

Once you've seen Giardia you'll never forget it. The stool looks like jello and is shiny or greasy, and has a strong odor. The vet can do a fecal float test. If your dog has Giardia, the test will show it. The vet told me to bring in a fresh stool sample (within 2 hours) when they do the test. Common treatment is the use of Flagyl which won't harm your dog if he doesn't have it. If he does, the medications start to work quickly.


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## BlackthornGSD (Feb 25, 2010)

Giardia can come and go like that--and the pup could have been normal at the breeder's and had a problem arise when she came under stress. It can be hard to avoid exposure to in a wet spring, so it's definitely worth testing for and may be worth treating just in case it doesn't show up. See what your vet thinks.


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## Elaine (Sep 10, 2006)

I'm not a fan of treating a dog for something they don't have, but as this pup has a littermate with it, I would first check a fecal, and even if negative, probably treat anyway as your pup has had diarrhea on and off. Giardia is so contagious that if one pup in a litter has it, chances are they all have it.

For best results, take in a steamer, as fresh as possible. I've done a ton of fecals and age of the stool definitely affects the results.


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## minerva_deluthe (May 6, 2012)

Her stool is definitely not like jello. On and off it can be quite watery though.

Someone suggested to me last night to treat with diatomaceous earth. I looked it up and it seems harmless enough. I wonder if this would be effective if indeed she has giardia?

My concern is I don't know that I want to get into the expense of repeated stool testing at the vet only to have them possibly prescribe something less effective than panacur. I mean I am certainly willing to use the vet if necessary. But I'm wondering if something like DE would do the trick without that rigamaroll. And I could start her on it today. Hmm.

eta - Watery is not the word. More like really soft on and off, or the start will be normal and the end will be very soft.


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## Barb E (Jun 6, 2004)

I'd take in a fecal and ask for the Giardia Antigen test and not the float.
There are a lot of false negatives with the float and less (though possible) with the antigen. 

Untreated Giardia that goes on for a long time I believe can result in issues with a dog's GI Tract and....it can pass to people!!!

I battled Giardia with Dante for months and months (false negatives on the float, didn't know about the antigen test).
His stools were never really bad, from cow-pie to soft but pick-up-able. The other thing that Giardia can cause is malabsorbtion, Dante ate less once it was gone because he was absorbing all the nutrients from the food!!


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## BlackthornGSD (Feb 25, 2010)

You can pick up Safeguard/febendazole/Panacur without a prescription (any farm supply store or any number of internet stores) and just treat her--it serves as a general de-wormer and will not hurt her either way.

I think diatomaceous earth can help minimize problems before they occur, but I wouldn't use it to treat an already existent problem.


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## katdog5911 (Sep 24, 2011)

Just went thru a giardia infection a few months ago. Stella was acting normal other than she wound up with watery poop every hour or so. Brought in a fresh samPle and she was positive. Flagyl and panacur twice did the trick. Also had her on a bland diet and added pumpkin. Giardia was not pretty


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## minerva_deluthe (May 6, 2012)

Yes I'd read that SafeGuard can be used. I only see it for goats on the website of our local feed store. I read here that the goat one can be used for dogs though??

I am concerned as she was wormed only a week ago by the vet. Is that too much worming? I don't know what they used, and they are closed til tomorrow - I will call them in the morning and find out.


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## minerva_deluthe (May 6, 2012)

Barb E said:


> I'd take in a fecal and ask for the Giardia Antigen test and not the float.
> There are a lot of false negatives with the float and less (though possible) with the antigen.
> 
> Untreated Giardia that goes on for a long time I believe can result in issues with a dog's GI Tract and....it can pass to people!!!
> ...


Oh this is great, thanks, I can ask for that test. I was thinking ugh false negatives and why bother. 

Interesting too about the stools. This is the situation with her. She is also not sick acting. On the other hand, although she qualifies as definitely puppy annoying and rambunctious, she is calmer than I would have expected as well. Not sure if that's a GSD 'not an idiot' thing, that's what I was chalking it up to.


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## minerva_deluthe (May 6, 2012)

So just to update I called the vet this morning, they said bring in a stool sample. I did, and it tested positive for giardia! Kind of a relief to know what it is. So now she is on some meds and they said we should see an improvement in the next two days. Thanks for all the information everyone!


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## Barb E (Jun 6, 2004)

Sorry the pup has Giardia, glad though that it was caught!

Be sure to have another test run after the meds are complete, it took a couple rounds to get Dante clear.


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## katdog5911 (Sep 24, 2011)

STella had to go on Flagyl and Panacur 2 times before we got rid of it! The boiled chicken/rice/pumpkin diet helped settle her belly too. I tried to keep up with changing her bedding and keeping her crate clean but it was impossible to disinfect everything. I did keep up with picking up the poop in the yard ASAP but never did anything else. No other person or dog in the house caught it and for that I am thankful. Glad it is gone!!!!!


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