Giardia Protozoa
(Diarrhea, Vomiting, and Weight loss)Excerpt from a "typical" letter exchange between a pet owner and Linda Arndt of the educational website GreatDaneLady.com. Pet Owner: "We had her stool checked for Giardia it was negative, of course." Linda Arndt: "From all that you are telling me, this dog has Giardia - you simply can't find it! It is so hard to find you just need to treat for it. Do this...worm her with Panacur - do it for 3 days, then in 10 days take the same dosage you have for 3 days and divide that into 10 days. This Giardia is IMPOSSIBLE to find. Everything you tell me says this is a giardia dog and you won't get relief until you get this cleared up. I know one pre-vet student that ended up taking her dog to work with her, pulling fresh stool samples several times a day for several days before they actually found it - and here she is working with the vets right there in the labratory and even they didn't find it! You have nothing to lose to try my suggestion because at this point nothing else is working." Owner's Response after following the suggestion: "We saw a new vet at the office and I convinced her to treat for Giardia. Within 2 days, her stools looked better than I had seen in a long time. Within a week, she gained 3 pounds. She still isn't eating a lot yet , but 2 1/2 cups dry and 1 can is better than barely 1 cup dry with gravy per day. She's gaining weight! She's definitely feeling better. Anyway, thanks again. I REALLY APPRECIATE everything." - TSM
Introduction A Word About Giardia - this is a waterborne protozoa (a parasite, but not a worm) which is VERY difficult to detect. Only at certain cycles will the cysts be noticeable in the stool which makes it next to impossible to detect. To test for this you need to to have the vet go up inside the rectum with a loop and take a fresh/warm sample of stool from the dog in order to get an accurate reading. You can’t bring one in in a baggie! Even if the dog shows up as negative for Giardia, and the dog exhibits any of these symptoms, you need to discuss with your vet the necessity to treat for Giardia, in order to rule out any infestation. Intermittent loose stools Will not gain weight Poor appetite Some dogs will eat but keep losing weight Graze on grass excessively Gassy
Anytime you have a dog that will not gain weight, is on/off their feed and/or with intermittent loose stools, gas or diarrhea, you should check for Giardia first, before you start running up vet bills looking for other health problems. Sometimes these dogs will not eat, because Giardia causes such stomach upset and severe cramping. It is because of this, they will often graze on grasses excessively.
Giardia is a very big problem, one that goes undetected by most veterinarians Carol Turkington writes, "Once an infestation of Giardia, it often reoccurs. Giardia is spread by food or water contaminated by the Giardia protozoan organism found in the intestinal tract and feces. When the cysts are ingested, the stomach acid degrades the cysts and releases the active parasite into the body. Once within the body, the parasites cling to the lining of the small intestine, reproduce, and are swept into the fecal stream. As the liquid content of the bowel dries up, the parasites form cysts, which are then passed in the feces. Once excreted, the cysts can survive in water for more than three months. The parasite is spread further by direct fecal-oral contamination, such as can occur if food is prepared without adequate hand-washing, or by ingesting the cysts in water or food."
Turkington goes on to state, "Diagnosis can be difficult because it can be easy to overlook the presence of the Giardia cysts during a routine inspection of a stool specimen. In the past, the condition has been diagnosed by examining three stool samples for the presence of the parasites. However, because the organism is shed in some stool samples and not others, the infection may not be discovered using this method. A newer, more accurate method of diagnosing the condition is the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) that detects cysts and antigen in stool, and is approximately 90% accurate. While slightly more expensive, it only needs to be done once and is therefore less expensive overall than the earlier test."
Generally, Flagyll, Metronidazole and Panacur are often used for Giardia, and repeated again in 2 weeks if the symptoms have not subsided. In 2001, Flagyl (metronidazole) appeared effective in only about 60% of the cases. "Currently, some vets feel the effectiveness of Flagyl (metronidazole) is down to 40%. Known side effects of Flagyl are nausea, disorientation, yeast growth, liver failure depression, regurgitation, and nerve damage". *I have been told by several vets, the best course is to use Panacur for 3 days and repeat it again in 2 weeks, taking the same 3 day dosage and dividing it up over 10 days to get it at all stages of the cycle. I have recently read that Flagyll and Metronidazole are only 40% effective any more, so discuss this with your vet and ask about the use of Panacur. There are other things you can do to make the gut an uninviting place for Giardia to proliferate, and that is by using the following supplements along with a good food such aw the Eagle Pack Line of Holistic foods. See Feed Program for Giardia Problems. * www.holisticbirds.com
Support Supplements:Oxy-Drops
It is a safe, stable, inorganic, liquid compound that has demonstrated efficacy as a bactericidal, fungicidal and virucidal agent. It operates in two ways, first it enhances the immune system and second it releases slowly and oxidizes, cleaning toxins from the body. Oxy-Drops acts on the organism at cellular level with no unwanted side effects. If you are going to use raw meat in your dogs diet it is very important to use the Oxy-Drops, to help prevent any pathogens and Giardia protozoa. Use Oxy-Drops diluted in water, and poured over their food. If they will not eat, then take the recommended dosage, DILUTE IT IN SOME WATER and use a small syringe (minus the needle) and place in the side of their mouth so they will drink it. Do NOT squirt down their throat and cause aspiration pneumonia. It is important to always dilute the Oxy-Drops. Also - if your water source comes from a well, I recommend at least 5 - 10 drops daily to a large bucket of water for decontamination. This will help once they are cleaned out from the Giardia. Oxy-Drops can also be used topically or as a colonic which is very beneficial in Giardia cases…we get it from both ends! For a colonic use 1-2cc’s of Oxydrops in 10-20 cc’s of distilled water. For a big dog you can use a large syringe (without the needle!) or turkey baster (soon to be retired from kitchen use). Take the dog outside, fill up the turkey baster or syringe and give them a squirt! Do this twice a day for 4-5 days as well as use internally 1 drop to 20lbs of body weight. Mix this in their food with a little water or canned meat…Oxy-Drops must be used diluted.See guidelines below. Guidelines for Using Oxy-Drops
http://www.nzymes.com/guidelines-Oxy-Drops.htm
To order www.nzymes.com or call - 877- 816-6500
Tincture of Blackleaf - an excellant anti-bacterial, anti-viral and anti-parasitic. Use daily on food to help keep Giardia from reoccuring. to order: www.nzymes.com
NZYMES - This is Dietary Enzymes in a chewable healthy pet treat or in granular form. Nzymes put the "living component" back into a cooked, processed, stored dog food. In other words, Nzymes provide the body with the right nutrients to allow the body to make the chemicals necessary to detoxify (clean out) the body and repair itself. After a bought of Giardia the body needs all the help in detoxifying so it can start to repair, and Nzymes are the best solution for this need for rapid repair.www.nzymes.com or call 877-816-6500
PROBIOTICS - 4 in 1 ProbioticsOnce you start treatment for Giardia, you MUST reestablish the intestinal flora of the gut. 4 in 1 Probiotics are several beneficial bacteria, digestive enzymes, Vit C and Barley Grass. Some of the bacteria in this product is microencapsulated to be released in the lower intestine for tough to handle intestinal problems such as IBD, Giardia protozoa, bacterial infection, stress or bloat recovery, loose stool, parvo etc. When a dog is on antibiotics, they MUST be on Probiotics at the same time and continue after, to replenish the intestinal flora of the gut. Otherwise you will get soft stools and opportunistic bad bacteria, such as staph, or yeast/fungus can start to flourish in the gut. One pound lasts for many months and it is not cost prohibitive and the benefits are well worth the use. Breeds that are prone to Bloat/Torsion need Probiotic cultures in their diet to help keep the pH balance of the gut.
To Order 4 in 1 Probiotics Online
MSM - Nutritional Sulfur In the patent (#4,616,039) and research information on MSM, it states the dosage for treating Giardia to be 500 mg - 3 times a day for two weeks, then continue with 1000 mg a day to help prevent Giardia re-infestation. Once an animal/human has Giardia infestation, they may have a reoccurrence of it throughout out their life so keep that in mind.
To Order MSM Online
This is another waterborne parasite that vets do not test for but could be at the root of your problem. Ask you vet to read about Cryptosporidiosis http://www.cdc.gov/Ncidod/dpd/parasites/cryptosporidiosis/default.htm * The article "Giardia Protozoa (Diarrhea, Vomiting, and Weight Loss)" is republished with the permission of Blackwatch Nutritional Counseling and Linda Arndt of the educational website GreatDaneLady.com.
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