Save Dogs From Canine Distemper is a project run by Kind Hearts in Action, a dog rescue and placement public charity based in Los Angeles, that raises funds to support the treatment of dogs with canine distemper and research into the disease. We support treatments for canine distemper based on the Newcastle Disease Vaccine as discovered by Dr. Al Sears. We need your donations to make Dr. Sears’ serum, pay for treatments and the costs of research.
The original Save Dogs From Canine Distemper Web site was begun by Ed Bond, whose dog, Galen, was saved from canine distemper by Dr. Sears in 1997.
Muttu
Here are the photos from India of Muttu, who was saved by Dr. Sears’ serum. Received Jan. 27, 2010.
Dixie
Here are the photos, video and story from the Dominican Republic, posted Jan. 23, 2010.
Tigger
Here are the photos and story from El Paso, Texas, posted Dec. 15, 2009
Max battles distemper
November 2009: Max had to fight both distemper and pneumonia. He was able to beat the distemper thanks to the spinal tap treatment discovered by Dr. Al Sears and used by a vet in Austin, Texas. It has taken him longer to beat the pneumonia, but he seems to be turning the corner. The music is Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata” and “Keep the Faith” by Margaret Owens.
Looks like your a good daddy for getting him treated instead of just putting him down.
my dog is going for the same but just distemper i dont know what to do vetss tel me to put her down..
Please e-mail me directly at ed.bond.new.york@gmail.com and tell me where you are, how old your dog is, what symptoms you have seen and whether you have seen seizures.
I recently adopted a chocolate lab puppy. In the last few days, 2 of her siblings have been put down because of distemper. My Charley is almost 10 weeks old, has been eating and drinking very well, and acting about as normal as the other puppies I have raised in my life did. However, she does sort of have a dry cough that seems like she is attempting to cough something up, and she has been relatively lethargic. I’ve seen that both of these are symptoms for distemper. I contacted the people through the adoption center I used, and I took her to a vet last night. The vet prescribed her an antibiotic as well as a cough supressant and didn’t really discuss many other options with me. The other vet I contacted told me there was no real test for distemper and that all they could do would be to give her some IV fluids and see how they work. Now, I’m just completely confused and don’t know what to do for my puppy. She’s an absolute sweetheart, and I am certainly willing to do what I need to do to ensure she makes it through this. I just need some advice. I’ve never experienced this before, and I would like to think that I can rely on these doctor’s opinions. However, upon some research, I’m learning that maybe something can be done for her. I am concerned that waiting will end up leading to her death, and I will be overcome with guilt for not getting her the help she needs. Afterall, she can’t get herself the help; only I can.
If anyone has any advice/recommendations, please contact me directly as soon as possible: codyleehill@gmail.com
Thank you
Advice on diagnosing distemper can be found here:
http://www.kindheartsinaction.com/archives/166
But the idea is that you should NOT wait on diagnosis. You will be better off if you pursue this as a distemper case and act quickly. The treatments for distemper that we endorse can work, but they work best in the early stages of the disease. if it gets beyond the 6th day of symptoms, the disease can go neurologic and at 10 weeks old it will be too late to treat.
This puppy needs the NDV serum treatment, and I need to know where you are. I will be e-mailing you directly.
The serum is explained here:
http://www.kindheartsinaction.com/archives/82
Ed Bond
Hello
I m from Dehradun,India.My vet recognised Symptoms of Cannine Distemper in my dog and he say that there is no treatment for that
what should I do.His Head treamors every time and one his leg also tremours sometime his full body tremours.what should i do reply quickly its related to one life.
rohitchawla89@gmail.com
There are vets in India using these treatments. I will send you the info via e-mail. If you do not get it, e-mail me directly at ed.bond.new.york@gmail.com.
I live in Austin, Texas. I scheduled an appointment in a couple hours with an Emergency Pet Clinic. What should I have them do for her? I am a college student, working part-time to pay rent and pay for my puppy. I have some money, but I am worried am not going to be able to afford all of the treatment and procedures you’re recommending. I will spend everything I have to get her well, but I just thought I should be upfront and tell you from the beginning that it is not exactly a healthy budget.
I have a puppy with distemper. This is long, but I wanted to give all details in case someone has suggestions.
This puppy was born 6-11-11 to a Siberian Husky that was dumped out in
the country where we live in 110-degree weather. She was scared by her
ordeal and unapproachable. When I was finally able (she was out there
for at least 1 week) to lure her into a kennel with food we discovered
that she was pregnant. She was not emaciated but very hungry and
exhausted. She slept nonstop for one week and our vet, who saw her the
very next morning after I caught her, verified that she was pregnant.
She had an uneventful pregnancy and delivery and we kept her indoors
and kept her very well nourished and cool. We also kept the
temperature controlled for the puppies and they were raised indoors.
It was only when the weather started to cool that we started putting
them to bed in an outside kennel. They were all given ice packs to
sleep on and they used them.
The pups have all been very very active. The pup that is now sick
began to kind of show signs of becoming the runt at about 2-1/2 to 3
weeks. We started to feed kibble about that time and he devoured it
voraciously. With so many dogs to take care of, we could not afford
the best food. They got Purina Puppy Chow. He always hoarded the food
and chased the others away with a growl. He began to catch up in
growth and is now taller than the other pups.
They had their first puppy shots at 7-1/2 weeks (did not include
distemper) and their second round with distemper at 9-1/2 weeks. The
vaccine was not Recombitek and it was from Pfizer.
We also took a stool sample into the vet the day they got their second
shots because they had all had on-and-off diarrhea. We had not
realized that they were eating some milkweed from the yard and I don’t
know how much they had. The food also seemed to be suspect so I began
feeding them boiled chicken, boiled hamburger, white rice, and yogurt
with active culture along with a little squash and/or pumpkin. The
diarrhea resolved.
During the time of the bouts of diarrhea, the pup that is now sick
(Chester) had a day of vomiting. I could not get him to the vet that
day. By the next day, it had resolved.
About the age of 10 weeks, he began to seem withdrawn and a little
lethargic. It was nothing I could put my finger on. He had a fever of
103.1 that night, but a normal fever the next day. The vet said not to
worry about it.
Around the first week of September (about 11 or 12 weeks old) he began
yelping as if in pain. This would happen mostly when he was sleeping.
He would wake himself up with a yelp. We thought one of the other dogs
had possibly jumped on him too hard. We assumed an injury. On 9-13-11,
the vet palpated down his spine and said that because there was a
flinch at a certain point, that was where the injury was located.
(Another vet has since done the same test, calling the flinch a
necessary and normal finding kind of like the reflex test for humans
where the doc bumps the knee with a hammer). He also had eye discharge
that day and his nose was very dry looking. It has never cracked and
it looks very good now except for an occasional very very slight
discharge from one nostril–almost imperceptible. He was started on
doxycycline 100mg daily.
The yelping got worse and he began to cry some while awake.On 9/15/11,
we went to a new vet because he was crying so much and it was after
hours and she would see us on an emergency basis. She did a very
thorough physical exam, palpating everywhere to get a pain response.
The only response was in both hind legs. She suspected hypertrophic
osteodystrophy. She also x-rayed but the x-ray was not conclusive. She
did not know about the muscle twitch. At that time I had only noticed
it once. I tried to mention it but got interrupted and didn’t remember
to do it again. She sent us home with a prednisone taper and tramadol
for pain.
The crying and whining continued but I thought maybe the tramadol was
helping some. On 9/18/11 I saw her again and told her about the
twitching. She suspected distemper and has done a PCR test. I should
get the results of that Monday or Tuesday. She says it will be
conclusive. I have read that the bladder swab is the only reliable
test. It is evidently too late in the game for that.
The crying got so bad and so constant that I asked for something
stronger. I was given a few butorphanol tablets from the vet’s stock
and they tried to call in a prescription for it but it is not
available in tablet form. We finally got a compounded cream with
Lipoderm with the butorphanol in it. I rub it into his ear.
The response to the pain medication, even using the butorphanol plus
the tramadol is very inconsistent. I know some of the cries are
homesickness since we are having to live apart from my husband and
Chester’s sibs and our other dogs, but some seemed unmistakeable
moaning and groaning like there was extreme pain. The last couples of
days there have begun to be longer bouts of no crying at all, even
without any pain medicine—5 or 6 hours– but then it usually starts
again. Sometimes it sounds like a frustrated cry. The twitching has
spread to at least one other leg and seems to also come from a spot on
his chest. I am considering discontinuing the pain medication for that
reason.
I have also given him Pepcid 10mg at least once daily because of fear
of tummy irritation with the doxy, the pred, and the pain meds.
The vet here has suggested that he might be having seizures but I
never see any signs of it.
If he has distemper, he must have a mild case of it. He has slightly
lined and dry, but not hard, foot pads. The eye discharge is no more
than what any dog would have. The nose discharge is almost
nonexistent. His nose looks dark and fairly moist–no cracking. He has
never lost his appetite or interest in things around him and treats,
although I ordered a special low-proten, low-fat food (PureVita) to
help with HOD. He’s not crazy about it and hasn’t eaten it with much
enthusiasm. He looks very good. He still sleeps a lot and stays on
his bed.
I found a website (greatdanelady.com) with info about HOD. She
suggests a low-protein and low-calorie and a lot of supplements. I am following her recommendations.
I may have forgotten some details, but it would be saintly to expect
anyone to take the time to read all this anyway. If you do, I’d be
grateful for feedback.
I read your story. It is possible that this pup experienced a very mild form of the initial stage of distemper, and now is in the neuro stage. Dr. Sears told me about when he was in practice he would see dogs who as puppies had very mild cold-like symptoms, not even enough to bring into the vet. But then later on — sometimes years later — would break out with neurologic stage of distemper. This is not to say that we can conclude right now that this is distemper, but if it is distemper it is the latter, neurologic form. The treatment is the NDV spinal tap, and you should read about — and watch the video — on this page: http://www.kindheartsinaction.com/archives/88. You should explore the rest of the Kind Hearts In Action website to get an idea of the possibilities and the limits of the treatments. You should especially read our FAQ. http://www.kindheartsinaction.com/archives/41. That is our main website.
It is possible that it is not distemper, and I say that because I usually don’t hear about this kind of crying and moaning you’ve described. But the thing is, distemper attacks different dogs in different ways. If you need further help, please e-mail me directly at ed.bond.new.york@gmail.com. If you need a vet to perform the spinal tap, there is one in Austin. Let me know if you need the contact into. I don’t post that on the Web.
Ed Bond
Ed- I have read that Dr. Sear’s treatment is only effective during the first few days of illness. This puppy has had the muscle twitching for abut 2 weeks.
Ed- I also meant to ask if the later relapses pose a danger to other, older, vaccinated dogs. Are they contagious?
what can i do for my puppy he was born on aug 23 and has disstemper the vet says i cant do anything that he will die he didnt say how long it would take im very poor but i love my puppy so much ill do anything i can to help him please tell me what can i do?
Please e-mail me directly at ed.bond.new.york@gmail.com and read our main website at http://kindheartsinaction.com/ Make sure to tell me where you are and what symptoms you have seen and whether there have been neuro problems yet.