Hey all. So I was informed that my puppy, Jack, has giardia. The whole litter has it. Breeder took them to the vet and I'm currently giving Jack amoxicillin twice a day and 2 ml once a day of some white stuff I'm not sure what it's called.

I read online that I should quarantine him for six weeks??? That seems like way too long. He's been in my bathroom since yesterday (when we brough him home) and my husband and I have been playing with him. He whines a lot, it saddens me :/ anyways, I haven't called or taken him to the vet yet since they're closed for the weekend, but I'm definitely calling tomorrow to see what they say. I'm sure we would be fine as long as we clean up after him and give him his medication, but I do have a cat... I want them to socialize, but I'm worried that my cat will also get giardia. I just want him to not be locked up for six weeks. Does anyone have any advice on what to do or experience with this? Would really appreciate it.

Thanks.

You can call ACCESS Emergency Vet Clinic. They have two clinics, one in Burien and one in Lake City. They are always open.

Every puppy gets Giardia, it's very, very common.

For general information, you might want to take a look at THIS from the CDC.

On the one hand, I didn't realize how long giardia could survive depending on weather conditions. On the other, it's not generally fatal though the accompanying diarrhea can be.

I don't believe amoxicillin covers giardia. Metronidazole - several of the "azole" anti-protazoal agents.

Also - people can catch giardia, too. If I remember correctly, bleach does not control. Look on the CDC site.

Gonna disagree with you in this one, Jeff. I've never had a puppy with Giardia.

Did you get this diagnosis from your vet or hers?

Right.

I didn't mean 100%.

Edit it to ..... Lot's of puppies........

Referring back to the CDC report, Giardia among dogs is most prevalent among puppies due to their immature immune system.  

Still referring to their site

Quote :

The risk of humans acquiring Giardia infection from dogs or cats is small[4-7]. The exact type of Giardia that infects humans is usually not the same type that infects dogs and cats[5-7].

Suggests to me that there might be a strain of Giardia which is common to both human and dog (and cat?) but that strain is not the one which dogs normally contract.
Quoting from the AMS article I refer to in the last paragraph:

Quote :

Humans are more commonly infected with subgroup AII, although subgroup AI has also been seen in some areas or studies (Table 9 ). In contrast, animals are commonly infected with subgroup AI, although subgroup AII is sometimes seen.

Thus zoonotic transmission of both subtype Ai and AII are possible but the article from AMS [linked later] suggests that it's uncommon.)  

The comment about bleach:
Bleach is one of the disinfectants recommended for hard surfaces; it is not recommended for lawn/garden use.

The uppercase "this" in my previous message is a link to the CDC site relating to giardia in pets. Once again, here is that link.  If you're interested.

If you're really interested (and more [except treatment] than you'd ever want to know) about Giardia, you might want to read a very interesting article from the American Society for Microbiology

That's fair!

amymeme wrote:

I don't believe amoxicillin covers giardia.  Metronidazole - several of the "azole" anti-protazoal agents.

Metronidazole is the other one he's taking! In this paper here it just says amoxicillin is used to treat various bacterial infections.

mbarnard0429 wrote:

Did you get this diagnosis from your vet or hers?

From her vet, but she took the litter to Banfield.

I just got off the phone with my vet and they said that it's okay to have my cat and Jack socialize as long as I pick up his waste, wipe his bum, and just make sure he's clean. The dog strain is different than the cat strain of girardia. But yesterday I called the emergency vet clinic and they said to quarantine him for 1-2 weeks :/ I'm not really sure what to do. I hate hearing him cry.

When keno had it we used lysol. We sprayed everything and then had the wipes that I used on both dog's feet when they came in from outside. It took 4 weeks for keno to test negative. I never quarantined him from us or my other dog, but I did have them both tested every week until it was gone and sterilized everything.

Not to forget, if possible daily cleaning of the house with bleach is very important. =) Hope Jack get well soon

We never did hear back from @suepatt22 I hope everything turned out well.

@aljones it did turn out well! He was healthy for a few weeks but then recently got coccidia today is his last day on medicine and will be tested in two weeks.