The new isolation ward at the Whyalla Veterinary Clinic, which was completed this year, is now full of dogs with vomiting and diarrhoea as the vets and nurses battle the latest parvo outbreak in Whyalla.
The new isolation area means that infected dogs can be effectively treated without affecting the regular operation of the clinic or posing any risk to other patients. Additional nursing staff have been rostered on to cope
with the burden of treating so many infected dogs.
All the dogs that have contracted parvo are unvaccinated and the vets advice to all the dog owners in Whyalla is to ensure that your dog has been vaccinated in the last year.
Puppies should be kept confined at home until 2 weeks after their 16 week vaccination and dog owner are encouraged to change their shoes when entering their house to avoid tracking in parvovirus on their shoes.
If your dog has any vomiting episodes or has smelly bloody diarrhoea, it should be seen by a vet sooner rather than later. This is all the more important if you dog has not had an updated vaccine in the last 12 months.