Shelter quarantines puppies - Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

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By CHRIS ESHLEMAN, Staff Writer

The holiday season is proving to be less than merry for some area puppies, and for anyone who hoped to adopt a canine pet for Christmas.

After dogs at the Fairbanks North Star Borough's animal shelter were hit early this month by a virus, officials quarantined a group of dogs and suspended adoptions until next week.

Animal control is also offering dog owners tips to keep their pet from getting, or spreading, canine parvovirus--commonly called parvo.

Animal control workers and veterinarians confirmed more than a dozen cases in recent weeks, animal control manager Matt Ruger said. Ruger is asking pet owners to help stop the virus from spreading.

While the intestinal virus only affects dogs and can't be caught by people or other pets, owners need to be careful. The virus can be spread easily and an infected dog might not show symptoms for a week, according to Ruger.

"It's serious," Ruger said. "The animals in the shelter come from the community. So if it's in the shelter, it's in the community. It's just like your kid going to school and coming home with the flu."

Adoptions could restart as soon as Dec. 27, he said.

Parvo is fairly common in Fairbanks, said Margaret Eastman, a veterinarian at Aurora Animal Clinic, and hits the area a few times every year. The developing immune systems in puppies provide a window of opportunity for the virus, which can attack a puppy's bone marrow and leave it defenseless.

"It's devastating in puppies," Ruger said. "From 6 to 12 weeks as they're building their immunities and starting to be weaned, they become susceptible."

A small outbreak of parvo earlier this month led the shelter to shut down adoptions for 10 days, Ruger said. The day after the program restarted, there was another case. Then two more puppies that had been adopted turned out to be sick as well.

Symptoms include lethargy, loss of appetite, vomiting and diarrhea. They may not show up for a week after a dog is infected, however, so Ruger is urging dog owners to follow these steps to protect their dogs and prevent the possible spread of parvo:

* Update your pet's vaccinations, including parvo.

* Keep your pet away from other dogs' feces.

* Clean up after your dog, even in your own yard.

* Clean your pets' food bowls and beds with a solution of one part bleach to 32 parts water.

"Particularly for puppies, you want to be careful of their exposure to other puppies in public places," Eastman said.

Pet owners are also encouraged to find alternate homes or temporary care for dogs and puppies instead of bringing them to the shelter.

"People don't need to panic. But what they do need to be aware of is that this is spread through feces," Ruger said.

Parvovirus is composed of many individual viruses, and almost every species of mammal seems to have its own strain. Each strain is unlikely to infect animals outside of its group.

Animal control officers who find dogs running loose will try to find their owners. If they can't, the officers will bring the pets to the shelter, even if they may be sick, Ruger said.

"We have to assume that if an animal is wandering around, it's hot. That's how we're going to beat this disease," he said.