Can canine distemper be cured?

Today let’s talk about canine distemper in detail. What we call canine distemper is Canine Distemper Virus (CDV, Canine Distemper Virus). It is a contagious disease that is fatal to dogs, with a mortality rate of up to 50%. %, and even if it is cured, the remaining neurological symptoms of the virus will accompany the dog for life.

All dog parents almost become pale when talking about canine distemper. This virus is a nightmare for our furry children. It is like a bloodthirsty sprite in the night, killing countless dogs. Is this virus really so terrible? Is there no way to deal with it?

The main symptoms of canine distemper

The course of canine distemper is long and the symptoms are diverse. It can be mainly divided into 5 characteristic types: acute, hyperacute, gastrointestinal symptoms, neurological symptoms, and skin symptoms.
The clinical manifestations include yellow viscous secretions from the dog’s eyes and nose, coughing and dry cough, and typical symptoms such as fever, hardened foot pads, and clenching of the teeth.
The most frightening thing about canine distemper is its unique onset pattern. The early symptoms of the disease are the same as those of human colds. Dogs usually have a low fever (between 39.5℃~40.5℃, which is considered a low fever for dogs) and shed tears. and nasal discharge, and the mental state becomes worse. The symptoms will improve after about two days. The dog’s fever will subside and its appetite will return. At this time, the owner will usually mistakenly think that the pet has a cold, and it is not serious and has recovered.
When the owner slacks off, the latent virus will continue to come out to do evil. After a day or two, the dog will enter the middle and late stages of canine distemper. At this time, the best opportunity for treatment has probably been missed. Therefore, if your dog has the same symptoms as a cold, you should not take it lightly. Don’t wait until it is too late to regret it in the middle and late stages.

Propagation mode

Canine distemper virus spreads through the respiratory tract and digestive tract, including excrement, secretions, nasal mucus, saliva and other channels that can cause infection. In addition to dogs, other canines can also get sick and spread the disease, including new household pets such as foxes and minks, as well as weasels, raccoons, etc. in the wild. Even giant pandas can die from canine distemper.

How to diagnose

Similar to parvovirus, pet hospitals generally use test strips to assist blood tests to diagnose canine distemper. If both CT lines appear on the test paper, regardless of the color, the result is positive.

Treatment and prevention efforts

Canine distemper treatment mainly uses infusion to supplement nutrition, water and provide drugs such as monoclonal antibodies and interferons. It should be noted that the course of canine distemper is longer, the cure rate is lower, and the condition is easy to relapse. It is recommended to choose hospitalization for treatment and do not take it lightly. Canine distemper is not an incurable disease, but the mortality rate is relatively high. Parents do not need to talk about this discoloration. With active treatment and good care, there is a chance of cure. However, there is a possibility of recurrence after cure. Parents should pay more attention to prevent it. The virus strikes again.
Canine distemper virus is relatively unstable at room temperature and is especially sensitive to ultraviolet light, dryness and high temperatures above 50~60℃ and below 122~140℃. Therefore, it is necessary to disinfect the pet living area regularly, and it will play a certain preventive role. Choose DuPont Virgo for disinfection and use ultraviolet light to assist in cleaning and disinfection.

Incubation period

The incubation period of this disease is usually one to two weeks, so even if the puppy is not infected with canine distemper when you first buy it, it may still develop the disease a week after returning home. There are even unscrupulous businesses that inject serum into dogs in advance, which will affect the accuracy of the test strips and may even fail to detect the disease. Then they sell the sick dogs as healthy dogs, which not only delays the treatment of the dog’s condition, but also makes the parents We spend a lot more time and energy.
To sum up, canine distemper is not a scourge, but it is indeed very harmful. However, the chance of cure is not 0, so parents should not give up treatment because of this. It is the responsibility of a qualified pet parent to help and accompany it out of the disease.