Distemper

Have you heard of distemper? I haven't heard it until our three-mont-old, pinoy dog got positive on distemper.

Late night on November 26, 2017, we were suddenly alarmed with the unusual barking of our puppy. Winter was barking frantically toward her sister Summer and we found out that Summer, was having a seizure. It shocked us, as we didn't know why or how it happened. It was a terrifying scene, as the seizure seemed not to stop and it repeated over and over again. Seeing how terrible it was, we rushed her to an animal hospital.

From there, began the critical distemper journey of Summer.

What is Canine Distemper?

Canine distemper is a contagious and serious viral illness with no known cure. 

Distemper is a viral disease, which affects the gastrointestinal, respiratory, and central nervous systems in dogs. The canine distemper virus (CDV) causes the disease. It is highly contagious, and is often fatal.
While canine distemper is found around the world, vaccinations have greatly reduced the number of deaths attributed to it. Puppies between the ages of three and six months are the most susceptible to the disease, and are more likely to die than an infected adult dog.
The typical distemper sufferer is a dog who has not received the proper vaccinations. These are usually rescue dogs, or dogs from a pet shop.
The CDV virus can be transmitted through the urine and feces of infected dogs, but the primary method of transmission is through airborne viral particles breathed in by the dog. Dogs in the recovery phase of the disease may continue to shed the virus for several weeks, although once they are fully cured, the danger of infecting others is past. The CDV virus is susceptible to most disinfectants, so routine cleaning of the living quarters of infected dogs will minimize the spread of the disease. (source: dogtime.com)

The question now is... How did Summer get the virus?

Before going to the matter, let me tell you first about Summer and Winter. They are from a litter of five, whose mother was adopted by our neighbor. This neighbor of ours has dogs of their own but still has a kind heart for feeding native dogs that stay around our subdivision. Summer and Winter's mom gave birth to five puppies. Having seen for the first time how cute the puppies are as they are growing, I kind of fell in love with Summer. She stands different from the five; everyone was white except her. 

If you are living in the Philippines, native dogs are mostly without owners. They just exist astray around the community or in the streets. I was moved when my neighbor's husband, who is not a Filipino, commented how oddly Filipinos do not give attention to their native dogs, instead spending a lot to own breed dogs when native canines are just as adorable as breed dogs. A pity and a shame. 

Though I have attachment experience with native dogs from my childhood, I'm always as careful to own one as I have a little fear of dogs. It took a long year since I attached myself to a dog again. For companionship, my husband and I decided to own one, and we had a Labrador who is now a senior. We had her eight years ago, when she was four months old.

Seeing the new native puppies, we have thought about caring one,  and we both agreed. Summer was the one. We are so happy to have her. Kira, the senior Lab, seems so easily adjusted. A few days later we decided it would be nice to have two puppies so to have each other company to grow and to play with. It was more fun having both siblings. Seeing them happy playing together plus Kira brought much positive energy.

A nightmare came when Summer got a seizure and distemper came to view. We were unaware of such an illness until she became positive for it. An illness without a cure? How could that be? How did she get it? Looking through the events before it, we suspected that Summer was contaminated by her own mother,  who sometimes sneaked in through our gate. We didn't know then that the mother was sick and probably got the distemper virus already. Later we noticed some signs on the mother, which is a thick mucus coming out of her eyes.

Before the seizure, Summer already manifested signs of distemper, which we were unaware of. Her eyes were gooey and with mild discharge. We consulted a doctor when she and Winter both lost their appetite and both had loose feces. They were given medication and for the next few days got healed, but that night on November 26, 2017, Summer had seizures. They were supposed to be vaccinated,  but since they were taking medicine, it couldn't be done at the same time.

Distemper could have been prevented if only we had the knowledge on early vaccination. 

Preventing distemper infection is as easy as taking your dog to the veterinarian for a shot. The “distemper shot” is generally combined with vaccines for canine parvovirus, parainfluenza, adenovirus 2, leptospirosis, and sometimes coronavirus. Puppies receive a series of shots, beginning when they are six to eight weeks old, and then every four weeks until they are 16 weeks old. (source: dogtime.com)

Summer and Winter were the first dogs we took in our caring, they're just over a month old. We really didn't have any idea when and how young a puppy should get vaccinated. Kira had her vaccine as we had her from breeders.

And now begin Summer's treatment. How do you treat dogs with distemper?

Treating distemper

Unfortunately, there is no specific drug that will cure distemper. The best treatment option at this time is to give supportive care for the different symptoms and to help prevent new infections occurring while the white blood cells are suppressed. A few examples of supportive treatment follow:

-Antibiotics to help prevent pneumonia
-IV fluids to replace fluids lost due to diarrhea and vomiting
-Anti-seizure medication
-Steroids (used only with severe seizures that cannot be controlled with regular medication)
(source: dogtime.com)

As I mentioned, it has no cure,  we supported her with antibiotics, vitamins, an immune booster, a series of  shots vial for antibodies, anti-seizure, and later, medication for her cough. During the course of the treatment, her white blood cell count normalized. We had high hopes that she would recover as her body was responsive to the medication. Her seizures stopped and she ate well until another problem occurred. She got a skin infection and we found out about the blood parasite. Another medication followed.

I personally took care and gave her support, an extra effort she needed as my husband took care of Winter and Kira separately. Summer was in isolation because the illness is contagious. We were grateful that Winter didn't get the virus,  as they were together before the seizure.

Our positive hope plummeted when the seizure came back. The doctor explained that once a dog gets distemper, seizures will occur every now and then for the rest of their life. There will be twitching. There will be maintenance to prevent seizures. Dr. Lyra reminded us about the 50/50 chance,  but we were still hopeful and continued the treatment. We were hopeful that it would come to pass. We read stories of distemper survivors and how their dogs live a normal life after the treatment. We visualized Summer having a quality,  happy life.

We were on appointment with her doctor when the seizure came back. Dr. Lyra then asked us to take a video of Summer to see how she was doing.

The video shows the least positive observation nonetheless. Eating on her own and walking, Dr. Lyra wanted us to update her as much as possible. Watching this video, I came to look back on an older video I took during the treatment.

On day 4 of the treatment, her seizure already stopped here. She liked walking, though she had acute balancing problem experience. It's as if her back legs lost strength from time to time and she had herself fall and bump into objects before her.

Day 7 shows how she's doing well. She walks and plays with her toy. During this time, the skin infection on her forehead got much more noticeable.

Summer's skin infection got worse even with medication. It's possible due to distemper, and her immune system was very low. I did everything to clean her infection three times a day. On day 21, the infection got far down to her chest. We still never let our hopes down since the parasite was known and medication was provided for her.

It was a roller coaster ride for us, especially for me as I am so attached to her. I have cried a liter of tears already. Everyday's been a miracle as she is taking her food and medications well until the day of my fear came. I feared about the "neurological complication" where she might get paralyzed.

Secondary bacterial infections often exacerbate these symptoms. Dogs usually develop an inflammation of the brain and spinal cord, the symptoms of which are varied and progressive.

Dogs can die from distemper; those that do are usually felled by neurological complications, such as the following:

-depression
-Ataxia, an inability to coordinate the muscles
-Hyperesthesia, a heightened sensitivity to sensory stimuli, like touch and pain
-Myoclonus, disabling muscle spasms
-Paralysis, partial or complete
-Deterioration of mental abilities and motor skills
-Seizures affecting any part of the body. One memorable type of head seizure that is unique to distemper is sometimes called “the chewing gum fit” because the dog appears to be chewing gum. (source: dogtime.com)

After the seizures came back, for some time, I started feeding her while she's lying. She took the food very well;  it's just that she wasn't able to eat on her own as she did on day 18. During this time, it's as if her legs were semi-paralyzed. I massaged her and spent time walking and exercising with her. With the distemper survival stories I've read, I still had hope that she would regain her strength and be up and running again.

On the 27th day of the treatment, she didn't swallow anymore. "The chewing gum fit" kept on coming. Her weight was dropping in speed as I visually observed it. She's so weak,  but the head seizures keep coming on. At some point she was turned blue. She was already experiencing poor blood circulation. It was so hard to see her looking like that.

On the second day of not swallowing, which marks the 28th day of the treatment, on December 24, 2017, we have finally decided to put her to sleep. It was the most "responsible decision" we have had. We don't know how long she will still be breathing in a state where head seizures occured non-stop and on her bluish-purple color. Who would know really? Such a shame it has to happen. Devastating... But life has to move on. Winter has started her vaccine,  and 2 more shots are to come. Kira has her maintenance too.

This is a learning experience.

"Remember the good and happy moments," This is what we are holding in our minds right now. Summer will always be our "pinoy shepherd."

I want to share the only two videos I have of them, together closely to each other, running and playing.

This happened nineteen days before the treatment. Kira, Summer and Winter had a playful day.

The first video I took of them together, the day Winter became part of the household.


I'm surprised I found and took this short video moment with Summer. The very playful puppy that made my day.