Coccidia

The first major emergency we ran into was quite common but stressful/upsetting/time-consuming/overblown none the less.

For those of you who don't know:

–noun

Microbiology.

any sporozoan of the order Coccidia, often parasitic in the digestive tracts of certain animals and a cause of coccidiosis.

Needless to say, it isn't fun. Here's what you need to look for:

diarrhea, vomit, loss of appetite, dehydration.

These are the main symptoms. What's interesting about Jacques' case is that his main symptoms were extreme lethargy and the refusal to drink water. Nonetheless, I knew something was wrong so I immediately made an appt, carted him off to the vet, and left with a prescription of Albon and a restless mind. The vet didn't sufficiently address my insecurities, so I took it upon myself to do the research and these are the things that stood out to me:

It should be mentioned that stress plays a role in the development of coccidiosis. It is not uncommon for a seemingly healthy puppy to arrive at his new home and develop diarrhea several days later leading to a diagnosis of coccidia. If the puppy has been at the new home for less than thirteen days, then he had coccidia before he arrived. Remember, the incubation period (from exposure to illness) is about thirteen days. If the puppy has been with his new owner several weeks, then the exposure to coccidia most likely occurred after the animal arrived at the new home.

This was definitely the case with Jacques, and sure enough, I found out after I called the breeder that the three remaining puppies were diagnosed. This isn't something you should ream your breeder for, it's an extremely common occurrence and there wasn't anything he/she could've done to prevent it.

Also,

Because coccidia is spread by the feces of carrier animals, it is very important to practice strict sanitation. All fecal material should be removed. Housing needs to be such that food and water cannot become contaminated with feces. Clean water should be provided at all times. Most disinfectants do not work well against coccidia; incineration of the feces, and steam cleaning, immersion in boiling water, or a 10% ammonia solution are the best methods to kill coccidia.

After overloading on information, I narrowed my plan down to the basics. The No. 1 thing I was most worried about was dehydration so I went to Walgreens and picked up some Pedialyte, a large (the one that comes with the Albon is too small) syringe that you can get for free behind the pharmacy counter, and a few cans of chicken broth. Other than those things, all you need is wet dog food (I use ScienceDiet puppy that I mix with their hard kibble) and patience. Don't try to play with him/her for at least 5 days after starting the meds, even if they seem like they want to play its important to resist.

J started feeling better 3 days after starting the Albon, now he's WEARING ME OUT. Hope this helps for anyone facing this situation.