Giardia Vaccine for Dogs

Dogs can be vaccinated for the protozoa giardia.

Giardia, sometimes referred to as "beaver fever," is a protozoan infection occurring in the intestines of mammals, including dogs. The giardia cysts attach to the digestive track of the dog and reducs the absorption of nutrition, which causes a loss of weight and vigor. Dogs contract giardia by drinking waters contaminated with fecal matter from animals infected with the disease, including wild beavers. A vaccine, marketed as Giardia Vax, exists for the prevention of giardia in dogs.

Giardia Vaccine Protocol

The giardia vaccine is can be given to dogs as young as two months old. A second vaccination is given about two weeks after the first, with an annual booster thereafter. The vaccine is produced by Fort Dodge Animal Health and administered by injection. All vaccines should be given to healthy dogs who are not pregnant or nursing.

Giardia Exposure

According to the website wellvet.com, most dogs are exposed to giardia at or near the time of birth. While the vaccine stops the giardia from infecting the dog, it does not heal a giardia infection. The website beaglesunlimited.com suggests treating an infected dog with metronidazole, a de-wormer, for five days to clear the animal's system of giardia. If followed immediately by the Giardia Vax vaccine, the dog's system is cleaned of existing cysts and prevented by the vaccine from re-infection.

Diagnosing Giardia

Stool samples or swabs of the dog's rectum are studied under a microscope to determine if the dog has giardia protozoan present. A blood test is also available.

Preventing Exposure

Dogs contract giardia from contaminated water. Make sure all water sources the dog has access to are clean. Do not allow the dog to drink water from ponds or streams. Disinfect kennels and runs with a mixture of 1 percent bleach and 99 percent water.

Treating Giardia

Dogs infected with giardia can be treated with wormers. These drugs kill worms within the dog's body, allowing them to be expelled with the animal's stools. Wormers can cause diarrhea. Follow label instructions for the administration of any veterinarian medicine. Wormers remove giardia present in the dog, but have no effect on future infections. Vaccines can be used to prevent future infections, or a series of de-wormer medicine can be used.

References

• Pet Vaccine Clinic: Canine Core Vaccines
• www.pets.ca: Giardia in Dogs
• WellVet,com: Vaccine Protocol

Resources

• Beagles Unlimited: Giardiasis: Diagnosis, Treatment, and Prevention