We know you are. It sounds like you are trying to do everything you can think of. Hopefully he can hold on until Monday, and hope it's not too late if he does. Parvo is nasty, and it moves quickly.

Have you told the vet that you think it's parvo? I can't imagine any vet would turn you away, they all know how deadly this disease is.

I wish that we could be more helpful, but really, there isn't much advice we can give you. Like I said, there are no home treatments that have been proven to work, only medical attention and even then the fatality rate is high. Dogs that survive parvo are usually weaker than normal for their entire lives. Parvo can also affect the heart and cause problems later in life.

What you are doing now is the best and only thing you can do without a vets care. I hope that he can hold on until Monday and that he can be treated, if this is indeed parvo.

Good luck.

It sounds a lot like parvo. It sounds like when I lost my great dane puppy. He got sick on a Saturday night, and there were no emergency vets in the area, and none of the vets opening until Monday. Unfortunately he went downhill too fast and he didn't make it to the vet. It was one of the most painful things in my life, watching him suffer and not being able to help him. My heart really goes out for you and your pup. Make sure to give him fluids around the clock, pedialyte and gatorade are good, and make sure he stays warm, he shouldn't expend any more of his energy then he has to. I've seen similar symptoms with coccidia, so perhaps you could try getting Albon? I believe it can be brought over the counter.

If you do know someone with better financial standings who are willing to pay the vet bill, then yes it may be for the best to give him to a new home, but do NOT bring the puppy to any shelter, humane or otherwise where there are other dogs that may be contaminated. If it is Parvo then it would be highly contagious, and any un-vaccinated dogs it came into contact with would probably get sick as well.

I'm shocked and horrified. I don't even know if I should be responding here because my reaction is so emotional. Is it possible that a vet would let an innocent little puppy die for an extra $200? How could that be? If this is true, I can only assume that this person went into the field for the cash, not their love of animals. Would that be acceptable for a human being requiring critical care? Certainly not. I don't see our pets as being any less deserving of emergency care than anyone else in our families.

I wish you and your pup all the luck in the world. Keep making phone calls. Do everything you can. Hang in there. If it is parvo, every minute counts.

By the way, if this were my puppy, and if my vet was aware of the fact that this was likely a parvo infection and they refused care, you can bet your pants that, at the very least, I would be writing a letter to the editor of my local newspaper to bring this situation to light.

I do have to say that although I feel horribly sad for this puppy, that provisions should have been made ahead of time, in case such a problem should arise. You took on the responsibility of getting a puppy. It is a big responsibily, and one that falls at your hands.

We have given you many suggestions. Most you didn't respond to, although I know you have a sick puppy. But, I also know that you were commenting in between. Your puppy is likely not going to survive until Monday, and even if he does, do you know what the vet bills are going to be then? Far more than the $200 initial cost it would have been had you taken him in. Friday would have been a better option, since you said you knew about this for 3 days. These are just that facts you've given us.

The Humane Society must have said more than they just couldn't help you. If they couldn't help, they would normally intervene, or suggest other options. You never gave any feedback when asked if there was a something like a PayDay Loan Company, something you could pawn, a friend, relative, co-worker---anyone! All you kept on saying was that you were going to try and save him yourself.

Parvo isn't something that you can just handle by yourself. Keeping him hydrated, and the things that myself and others have mentioned are only a means of keeping him comfortable for a very short window of time.

I'm just not understanding something here. I'm not saying that you don't care for your dog, but I'll tell you what! If this was my dog,---I would beg, borrow, and steal to get her into the vet. I would go to the vets office and REFUSE to leave until they helped her. May I have the name of the person you talked to at the HSUS?

Have you ever considered asking for donations? You would be surprised at the number of people who actually are willing to help. Myspace can even be a valuable tool for connecting with animal rescues and good hearted animal lovers everywhere. For example a few years ago when we were driving to my In-laws I spotted a mass in the roadside ditch and we pulled over immediately. There was a very small puppy up to her shoulders in mud and water. From her age and the location of the ditch, it is most likely she was thrown into it. Upon scooping her up and checking for gender, a massive problem became apparent, a umbilical hernia about three inches long and an inch and a half wide. I could not afford the surgery at the time, but I would not abandon her either. I contacted a friend who networks on myspace and she took pictures of the puppy and the hernia and sent out a bulletin. Within two hours we had someone send in a donation from the UK which covered the surgery. Try reaching out to your friends, family, community, and anyone who cares. You just may find the help you need for your baby.

All I know is that I tried everything I could think of. He did not make it through the night. I regret not getting him care the day before. I feel horrible and at fault and will never own a puppy again. This was the first puppy I had and it hurts that I couldn't save him. I cried all night. I don't know what her name was. I'll give you number and you can call and ask her. You don't seem to believe me. I don't want to feel any worse than I already do. I'm crying right now. I don't know what to say. I'm sorry.

I'm so sorry! :( I didn't mean to make you feel guilty. It's not really like I wasn't believing you, it's more that I was frustrated because I was trying to think of anything I could to help. I had a feeling he wouldn't make it through the night. I'm crying now too. I never come on here and answer questions about sick dogs and then just leave and forget about it. It was on my mind all night. I've also had dogs that I've lost, and it's horrible.

Please don't let this stop you from getting another dog. You definitely can't bring one home right away because of the parvo virus being in your home, but don't let this keep you from loving another deserving pup!

Now that you know what to watch for, you will be better able to care for another. There are so many dogs out there that could use a caring person to love and take care of them. So please, give yourself some time to get over this, and then look into the eyes of another deserving soul, and open your heart again to one that will love you, greet you at the door, always be there when no one else is. It would be much sadder if that one little pup that needs you, sits in a shelter waiting for someone to give him a home, and no one ever shows up for him. I'm sorry you had to go through this. :(

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


I Only Wanted You


They say memories are golden

Well maybe that is true.

I never wanted memories,

I only wanted you.


A million times I needed you,

A million times I cried.

If love alone could have saved you

You never would have died.


In life I loved you dearly,

In death I love you still.

In my heart you hold a place

No one could ever fill.


If tears could build a stairway

And heartache make a lane,

I'd walk the path to heaven

And bring you back again.


Our family chain is broken,

And nothing seems the same.

But as God calls us one by one,

The chain will link again.

(Author Unknown)

I'm so sorry that the pup didn't survive.

I will tell you this, chances are, even if you had gotten him to the vet, that he wouldn't have pulled through, he was too far gone already from what you described.

Like Starby said, don't let this deter you from adopting another dog. I would consider an older dog, from the SPCA, one that has all it's shots and is already spayed or neutered. You will have to wait a while, and you'll have to thoroughly disinfect your home and yard to get rid of the virus.

Once again, I'm so sorry.

Thanks for the poem it made me feel a liittle better. And thanks for trying to help as much as you could.

Thank you also for your time and advise.

That's what we're here for, no thanks necessary. :)

I hope that you don't take this too hard, even though it is hard. This is part of having animals in our lives, they don't live as long as we do and sometimes their lives are cut short for reasons we can't hope to understand.

Your pup may not have lived long, but he did have the chance to be in a loving home with people who cared about him, that's more than most dogs get in a lifetime.

When you think of him, don't cry, smile because he was in your life, you made a difference in his, and I know you'll never forget him or the impact he had on you.

We're here if you want to talk, to cry, whatever. We've all been through this is some way, the death of a pet is never easy, no matter how it happens.

You're in my thoughts and prayers. If you need any advice let us know, if you need help let us know, don't feel that you are alone in all this, you aren't. Okay?

I'm really sorry to hear about your baby. I know how bad you are feeling right now. It hurts, and It may never stop hurting, I still sometimes cry over losing Aries, but you can't give up on pets! Just make sure to clean well to disinfect everywhere the puppy was in your home, and if you do decide its time for another dog then bring home an older puppy that has had all of its vaccinations, or adopt an adult dog. Also, make sure you have an emergency stash for situations such as this in the future. Also, if you adopt a dog instead of buying, you could save yourself hundreds of dollars that could then be put aside for pet emergencies such as this. Once again I'm terribly sad to hear the news, but at least he knew he was well loved. You did the best you could under the circumstances.

You have all helped so much I give my thanks. I probably won't have another pet anytime soon. This is the first time I've ever used this site. I really like it. I'll probably visit when I have questions about my children. Thanks again.

We look forward to hearing from you.

This is a wonderful site, many nice, helpful, kind, caring people.

Please do come back! This really is one of the greatest sites out there. We really do care about people and their questions. It helps us with ours too. That is how most of us got here to begin with. I don't blame you for not wanting to get another pet soon, but again, please don't discount it because of one bad experience. You did what you could. Sometimes we can get a little passionate when we give advice, but I think if we didn't, we wouldn't be human... we would just be a site that throws out general responses that are computer generated with no heart or compassion. So stick around. Maybe you could even help someone on the pet forum that is going through what you had to. :)

Starby, had to spread the rep.

All of us came here for answers and then started reading others questions and helped where we could. Many of us have become friends, extended family to each other.

I've been her for a little over a year, I still can't believe the kindness of all these people, people I've never met.

It's a great place, so come back, you'll be surprised how much it helps to be here and how much help and advice you yourself have to offer to others.