Dr. Brown talked to Dr. Forshey, the state veterinarian, and he confirmed that they are working on identifying the cause of death in several dogs. They suspect that it is a virus, possible Circo virus. This virus has not been found in dogs before (it’s found commonly in pigs). They have sent tissue samples to UC Davis, which is the only lab that can identify the virus. Ohio State has already ruled out common causes like salmonella, parvovirus, campylobacter, hemorrhagic gastroenteritis (HGE).
He thinks they will have it figured out by Monday and will have a national news release. Ohio is the only state seeing it so far (figures!).
The important thing is that dog owners need to get their dog to the vet ASAP at the first sign of vomiting and bloody diarrhea. Dr. Forshey indicated that most of the dogs are surviving if treated early. There is, of course, no vaccine available.
This information was available 8/29 on our Facebook page. If you have not “liked” us on Facebook yet, please do so to make sure you receive important information like this in a timely manner. Please share this information to your own Facebook feed so we can reach as many dog owners as possible.
