krisgil88 ,
The short answer is yes , dormant cysts may be present in dogs with no symptoms , however , it is also possible to have active cysts that are not shedding and thus will not show up in fecal float/stain test. Fecal ELISA Snap® Giardia test is best. IMO
I looked at one of your other threads and see your dog has a diagnosis of Giardia and has been treated with Metronidazole more than once and I take it you are still having problems. ( Metronidazole is only about 60% effective for Giardia treatment in dogs. ) Metro is standard treatment , however , in the more problematic or resistant cases of Giardia there are meds that have proven better results in dogs.
What I have used with good results with my dogs:
I most cases I will treat with Metronidazole for seven consecutive days ( dosed by dog weight ) and SafeGuard ( dosed by weight ) for three consecutive days. The SafeGuard can follow the Metro or be given at same time.
This treatment has worked for me very well , however, in your case given that you have a Vet confirmed diagnosis for Giardia , I would most likely ask my Vet to follow this treatment with Drontal Plus because it's efficacy has been shown to far exceed that of Metronidazole alone in treatment of Giardia in dogs.
Helpful Note: Dogs can reinfect themselves by grooming and ingesting fecal matter that contain active cysts. Along with treatment , dogs should be bathed with shampoo to remove fecal debris and associated cysts. Clean or remove bedding to be safe.
Giardia and Coccidia are common in hunting dogs and I have had to deal with this many times over the years. I will be glad to offer any other helpful info related to what I have used succesfully to treat my dogs if needed.
=======================================
If you don't mind , could you please give info on any and all meds , dosage and duration for each med used so far?
Thanks for the reply Oldhounddog
We do have an diagnosis of giardia. He was diagnosed about 3 weeks ago. We started him on a 5 day course of Metronidazole. The first day we had a formed stool and then the remaining days were mushy poops. We started a second round of Metro on July 9 because the vet thought another round might help to firm the poop. Mind you, the foul odor of the feces disappeared within the first two days. After two days on the second round of Metro, I still saw no improvement in the stool. I contacted the vet again and he suggested Tylan powder. After the first dose, we again had a perfectly formed stool. That evening (and two additional doses of Tylan) he was having very soft and partially diarrhea poops so I stopped it. I've been giving Fortiflora since he was first diagnosed, although I know that the antibiotics kill the good bacteria. I read about something called Perfect Form made by the Honest Kitchen over the weekend that people said has helped form loose stools. It's a herbal supplement so I decided to give it a try. He's been on it since Sunday and yesterday we had two firm poops, and a firm poop this morning. We'll see what the night poop looks like as you probably know, that is the one that is generally worse. Duke shows no other signs of problems. He is eating, drinking and playing normally. He has not lost any weight. We had a second fecal done yesterday to be sure that there are no other worms, etc. that were missed and it came back negative. I know the ELISA will stay positive for a while) He is just 6 months old and has been on antibiotics for approximately 17 days out of the last 30 days. (He was on a preventative after his neuter) I think his little belly is really messed up right now and needs a chance to regain it's normal flora balance. Based on what the vet told me about the Giardia (how it can always be there but not present a problem) and the fact that his poops no longer smell and he was treated with the antibiotics, I think we are dealing with either inflammation from the Giardia or just that his belly needs to get back to normal .For now I've decided on no more antibiotics and slowly returning his regular diet(been on chicken and rice for 1 1/2 wks) I've decided to continue with the Perfectform and Fortiflora right now and may add The Honest Kitchen's Invigor in the event there could be a bacterial overgrowth. I don't want to give him any more antibiotics until he has a chance to heal some. If we need to go back to them, I'm hoping he will have enough flora to help himself better. He's still such a baby. Have you ever tried these products?
krisgil88 ,
The short answer is yes , dormant cysts may be present in dogs with no symptoms , however , it is also possible to have active cysts that are not shedding and thus will not show up in fecal float/stain test. Fecal ELISA Snap® Giardia test is best. IMO
I looked at one of your other threads and see your dog has a diagnosis of Giardia and has been treated with Metronidazole more than once and I take it you are still having problems. ( Metronidazole is only about 60% effective for Giardia treatment in dogs. ) Metro is standard treatment , however , in the more problematic or resistant cases of Giardia there are meds that have proven better results in dogs.
What I have used with good results with my dogs:
I most cases I will treat with Metronidazole for seven consecutive days ( dosed by dog weight ) and SafeGuard ( dosed by weight ) for three consecutive days. The SafeGuard can follow the Metro or be given at same time.
This treatment has worked for me very well , however, in your case given that you have a Vet confirmed diagnosis for Giardia , I would most likely ask my Vet to follow this treatment with Drontal Plus because it's efficacy has been shown to far exceed that of Metronidazole alone in treatment of Giardia in dogs.
Helpful Note: Dogs can reinfect themselves by grooming and ingesting fecal matter that contain active cysts. Along with treatment , dogs should be bathed with shampoo to remove fecal debris and associated cysts. Clean or remove bedding to be safe.
Giardia and Coccidia are common in hunting dogs and I have had to deal with this many times over the years. I will be glad to offer any other helpful info related to what I have used succesfully to treat my dogs if needed.
=======================================
If you don't mind , could you please give info on any and all meds , dosage and duration for each med used so far?
Thanks for the reply Oldhounddog
We do have an diagnosis of giardia. He was diagnosed about 3 weeks ago. We started him on a 5 day course of Metronidazole. The first day we had a formed stool and then the remaining days were mushy poops. We started a second round of Metro on July 9 because the vet thought another round might help to firm the poop. Mind you, the foul odor of the feces disappeared within the first two days. After two days on the second round of Metro, I still saw no improvement in the stool. I contacted the vet again and he suggested Tylan powder. After the first dose, we again had a perfectly formed stool. That evening (and two additional doses of Tylan) he was having very soft and partially diarrhea poops so I stopped it. I've been giving Fortiflora since he was first diagnosed, although I know that the antibiotics kill the good bacteria. I read about something called Perfect Form made by the Honest Kitchen over the weekend that people said has helped form loose stools. It's a herbal supplement so I decided to give it a try. He's been on it since Sunday and yesterday we had two firm poops, and a firm poop this morning. We'll see what the night poop looks like as you probably know, that is the one that is generally worse. Duke shows no other signs of problems. He is eating, drinking and playing normally. He has not lost any weight. We had a second fecal done yesterday to be sure that there are no other worms, etc. that were missed and it came back negative. I know the ELISA will stay positive for a while) He is just 6 months old and has been on antibiotics for approximately 17 days out of the last 30 days. (He was on a preventative after his neuter) I think his little belly is really messed up right now and needs a chance to regain it's normal flora balance. Based on what the vet told me about the Giardia (how it can always be there but not present a problem) and the fact that his poops no longer smell and he was treated with the antibiotics, I think we are dealing with either inflammation from the Giardia or just that his belly needs to get back to normal .For now I've decided on no more antibiotics and slowly returning his regular diet(been on chicken and rice for 1 1/2 wks) I've decided to continue with the Perfectform and Fortiflora right now and may add The Honest Kitchen's Invigor in the event there could be a bacterial overgrowth. I don't want to give him any more antibiotics until he has a chance to heal some. If we need to go back to them, I'm hoping he will have enough flora to help himself better. He's still such a baby. Have you ever tried these products?
Best , oldhounddog
