Tag: Dr. Al Sears

Categories
Canine Distemper

My puppy Adrian

en español

My pound puppy Catahoula, Adrian, a few weeks after receiving the serum developed by Dr. Sears. She’s getting to know her new adoptive mother, Sky. Flying though my house, biting holes in my arms – fully recovered from likely distemper, severe pneumonia & anemia.

The puppy, Adrian, is an approximately 10 week old Catahoula female found in the street and picked up by the dog pound on 6/30. She was vaccinated that day upon arrival to the dog pound and weighed 10 pounds at that time. I found her on Petfinders on 7/7 and I got her on 7/8. I noticed on the way home she was coughing. She was playful and otherwise normal – eating and drinking.

By 7/9 the coughing had increased to fits or spells of coughing that went on and on for several minutes along with a clear discharge from her nose, so I took her to the vet. Temp was 103. He said it could be kennel cough, a cold or distemper. He said the test for Distemper wouldn’t be accurate due to the recent vaccine. He put her on Clindamycin. She was wheezing significantly and likely had pneumonia.
She ate once in the morning and refused food or drink after that. I started her on nebulizer treatments with Albuterol 3 x’s a day beginning that evening. It seemed to calm her breathing and she was able to rest peacefully for a few hours afterward. I also began forcing Pedialite, plain yogurt and Ester C mixed with Caro syrup. That evening she picked up a stick and brought it in the house. That’s the closest thing to playing she did that day.
7/10 I noticed the first green discharge from her nose and eyes. She also vomited for the first and only time when I gave her the morning dose of Clindamycin. No playing and obviously feeling bad.
7/11 – still refusing food or drink – continuing all of above. No new symptoms. Still strong enough to fight against things being forced down her throat.
Began searching internet, fearing distemper, and found out about the serum. Sent emails and got prompt responses with a referral to a vet with the serum. Went to the vet at 7pm and had tests done. She was diagnosed with pneumonia, likely distemper and we were told she was two points away from needing a blood transfusion.
7/12 – She was started on the serum and spent 12 hours in the hospital, receiving antibiotic injections. We took her home that evening and continued the serum, antibiotics, nebulizer treatments, vitamins.
Within 24 hours, it was obvious she was responding to the treatment. The green discharge stopped and the coughing decreased and eventually ended.
She is now healthy, romping through the house, playing, barking, growing and being a normal puppy.
Sydney Adams, LCSW
Ben Diaz
Copyright © 2011 Kind Hearts In Action Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
Categories
Canine Distemper

Report on effectiveness of NDV treatments

Statistics compiles by Kind Hearts In Action between December 2008 and August 2011.

“I’m sorry, but your dog has distemper. You should have him put to sleep.”
This is what dog owners around the world are told far too often. According to the experts, distemper is an incurable disease from which few dogs survive. Euthanasia is the frequent course of action.
But we’d like to show you some facts that we hope will give the experts a reason to think again. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of dogs could be needlessly dying of this disease every year.
Since December 2008, Save Dogs From Canine Distemper, a project of Kind Hearts In Action, has been tracking the effectiveness of a treatment discovered by a little-known vet in Lancaster, California. Dr. Alson Sears could not get the veterinary community to listen to him when he first discovered NDV-induced serum in the late 1960s. But now, our numbers support Dr. Sears’ claim that distemper is curable.
We have received reports from 14 vets who have used NDV to treat distemper dogs. Of those, 10 vets used NDV-induced serum in the early stages of the disease, and in 87 percent of those cases, the distemper dog survived. Dog caregivers — owners, fosters and rescuers — tell us that more than 65 percent of distemper dogs were saved by one of the treatments developed by Dr. Sears using NDV — Newcastle Disease Vaccine.
These numbers were compiled from e-mails from dog caregivers and from a survey of vets using the NDV treatments. These statistics support our primary conclusion is that if dogs can be treated within four to six days of the onset of symptoms, the majority of these animals can be saved. Our conclusion is also supported by a study conducted in Korea in 2003, which is included below.
However, the survival rate also relies on getting a fast diagnosis, on having a supply of serum available, and in successfully treating the dog for the opportunistic diseases — such a pneumonia — that often accompany distemper.
For this report, the vets were asked for just numbers of dogs treated and saved, but for our new effort called Project Carré, we plan to gather the kind of detailed, specific kind of data that will stand up to scientific review.
So, our work to prove the effectiveness of these treatments is not done. Any vets who have information about specific dogs they have treated with NDV-induced serum are asked to e-mail Ed Bond at ed.bond.new.york@gmail.com. These statistics will be updated routinely as we receive further reports.
If this treatment can be published and accepted in a veterinary journal, we believe the lives of countless dogs can be saved.

History

Dr. Alson Sears, a veterinarian in the desert community of Lancaster, Calif., discovered how to use Newcastle Disease Vaccine (NDV) as a treatment for canine distemper in the late 1960s. The basic principle of the treatment is to use the NDV as an inducer to prompt a reaction in the dog’s immune system that can create a material to kill the distemper virus. The protocol for making the serum is available here.
During his years as a practicing vet, Dr. Sears reports treating more than 600 dogs for canine distemper. He says that dogs infected with the distemper virus treated before going through the sixth day of showing symptoms had a survival rate in the high 90s. Dr. Sears was not able to get his discovery published. He retired in 2006.
However, his treatment had been made available on the Internet since May 2000 [http://www.edbond.com/distemper.html], and some vets have followed his treatments and theories with success. Today, the NDV treatments include the NDV-induced serum, the NDV as an IV injection to the body and the NDV spinal tap, which is for dogs in the neurologic stage of distemper.

Report on outcomes from veterinarians

According to 14 veterinarians who have reported outcomes to Kind Hearts In Action, 356 dogs infected with the distemper virus have been treated with at least one of the NDV treatments. Of those, 257 survived (72 percent). Ten of these vets reported treating 203 cases with the NDV-induced serum of which 177 survived, for a survival rate of 87 percent.
It is important to note that 150 of these dogs were treated in 2010 with NDV-induced serum by a Houston area vet as part of Project Hope. They report that of the 150 dogs that were treated with NDV-induced serum, 90 percent survived – 135 dogs. Combining these numbers with the efforts of other vets, Project Hope reports saving nearly 200 dogs from canine distemper.
The other cases include 108 dogs that were treated with NDV as an IV injection, of which 65 survived and 45 treated with NDV spinal taps of which 15 survived. Two of the surviving dogs treated with NDV as IV in Puerto Rico were also treated with NDV-induced serum. Here is a report on a dog treated with the NDV spinal tap by a vet in Alberta, Canada.
Vets who had reported on the effectiveness of the treatments were from Florida, Texas, California, Puerto Rico, Canada, Hungary, Romania and the Philippines. One vet in the Los Angeles area reported treating five dogs with NDV as IV, but did not learn the outcomes of those cases. Another vet in Southern Florida reports having used NDV on distemper dogs 27 times since 2009, but did not have the reports on outcomes available. These cases where the outcomes were unknown have not been added to the totals from the vets.

Report from Korea

A study on the effectiveness of the NDV-induced serum was also conducted in Korea in 2003. According to Dr. Kim Hee-Young, DVM, MS, PhD, the senior researcher for the Korea Animal Blood Bank, that was when he discovered the website about Dr. Sears’ treatment. He reports:
“In 2003, 102 dogs (from 12 vets) were diagnosed by ELISA as Distemper infection. Of them, the 54 dogs (52 %) were recovered completely on the check-up 6 weeks after the Sears treatment. In Korea, the success rate of conventional treatment in cases confirmed as Distemper (ELISA) was usually lower than 8 %.”
Dr. Sears’ serum has been available on the inventory of the Korea Animal Blood Bank since 2004.
 [http://board-1.blueweb.co.kr/board.cgi?id=vet20&bname=news&unum=14&action=view]
Dr. Kim Hee-Young writes:
“We have used Sears plasma (serum) in Distemper cases and found it works wonderful. … But, cases more than 5 days after symptoms or with neurological symptoms did not show any improvements. Some of the vets reported deterioration after injection. Thus, we don’t recommend to use it in cases which had shown distemper symptoms more than 4 days.”

Report on outcomes from dog caregivers

Since December 2008, dog caregivers — owners, fosters and rescuers — have reported the outcomes of 560 distemper cases to Kind Hearts In Action. Of these, 365 dogs with distemper were treated with an NDV treatment and 236 survived (64.6 percent survival rate).
This includes:
• 119 of 163 distemper dogs treated with serum that survived (73 percent).
• 51 of 68 distemper dogs treated with NDV as an IV injection that survived (75 percent)
• 66 of 134 dogs with neurologic distemper treated with the NDV spinal tap that survived. (49 percent)
There were also 195 cases that were not treated with NDV, of which 51 survived. (26 percent.) Also, 41 cases initially thought to be distemper were later diagnosed with a different disease. Of these, 30 dogs lived and 11 died. These were not included in the 560 cases listed above.
Additional photos, videos and owner testimonials of dogs successfully treated for canine distemper are available at https://kindheartsinaction.com/
If you have additional reports to share with us, please e-mail ed.bond.new.york@gmail.com and we will update these numbers as we receive them.

Conclusions

If anything, the numbers above show that distemper can be a treatable and survivable disease. Even without using NDV, about 25 percent of dogs can survive the initial infection of distemper. However, those dogs that do survive without treatment often have done so through the extraordinary efforts of the owner or caregiver. Such dogs often survive with neurologic problems, damage to teeth and other issues. But these dogs are also at risk to continuing and advancing neurologic problems that may lead to death later on.
The timely use of NDV can greatly increase the odds of survival and limit the damaging effects of the distemper virus. According to caregivers, the overall survival rate for dogs treated with one of the NDV treatments is 64.6percent. According to vets, the overall survival rate is 72 percent, but that climbs to 87 percent when considering only those cases treated with the NDV serum before the onset of neural problems.
Our position continues to be that treating with the NDV serum before it goes through the sixth day of symptoms is the most advantageous way of treating a dog suffering from distemper. The report from Korea recommends treating within four days of symptoms, and that also seems to be a reasonable goal. The sooner a dog can be treated, the better.
In the statistics from the caregivers, the IV injection of NDV has an slightly better survival rate than the NDV-induced serum at 75 percent. The NDV vaccine can be acquired and given to a sick dog as an IV injection very quickly. So, many dogs have been saved that way, and it spares the dog owner from an agonizing delay as they would have to persuade a vet to make the NDV-induced serum with a donor dog. The faster a dog can be treated, the better.
However, the problem with giving the sick dog a straight injection of the NDV is that recovery relies on the animal’s immune system being strong enough to create the needed response to fight the distemper virus. We believe this is a previously unknown material or group of interacting materials, possibly operating at the level of the RNAi system, that is able to neutralize the invading virus. However, finding the answer would require extensive scientific research.
If the dog’s immune system is strong enough, this material can be made from the NDV injection and save the animal. If the immune system is too damaged to respond or if the dog is of a breed that does not make the needed response, the straight NDV IV injection will not save the dog. According to Dr. Sears, breeds that do not have the needed response include include German shepherds, poodles, Irish setters, Gordon setters, English bulldogs and Shar Peis. Puppies younger than 12 weeks are also not likely to have the NDV response, and so serum is the only means to treat them with the disease-fighting material.
The serum can be more effective because the NDV is injected into a healthy dog of a breed known to make the immune response, which is then withdrawn and used to treat the sick animal. It is with vets who already have the serum on hand that the most success has been seen. The timely diagnosis of distemper in dogs is also critical in saving lives. This is why Dr. Sears came up with a quick and reliable test for distemper by checking the cells of the bladder in what is called a Brush Border Smear.
Dr. Sears was able to save dogs at a rate in the high 90s because he was able to quickly identify distemper cases and treat the dogs before the narrow window of opportunity closed. Similarly, the vet in Houston was able to save a large majority of dogs because of the ability to treat dogs quickly with a readily available source of serum. This appears to us to be a key to success, and perhaps further studies could provide more confirmation and learn the mechanism by which this serum works.
However, the use of the serum does not guarantee that a dog will be saved. Distemper often opens up other opportunistic infections such as pneumonia. Vets and caregivers have reported that even though they saw distemper symptoms reverse after NDV treatment, the dog died of pneumonia, another disease or medical problem. Dr. Sears has written a protocol of recommended treatments to give dogs an improved chance of survival.
As to the NDV spinal tap, it does offer some hope for the owner of a distemper dog that has gone into the neurologic stage of the disease. However, the chances of survival are only 50-50. For some of these dogs with neurologic distemper, they were saved because the caregivers put in extraordinary effort and intensive nursing care in addition to the NDV spinal tap. So, it exists as a way that can save some dogs. Here are some additional notes from Dr. Sears on measures to take after the NDV spinal tap.
Further information is available at https://kindheartsinaction.com/

We invite any reasonable, skeptical inquiries into this report.

Ed Bond
ed.bond.new.york@gmail.com
Kind Hearts In Action
Aug. 7, 2011

Copyright © 2011 Kind Hearts In Action Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NDV in the news

Stories about these treatments in the media.
Categories
Canine Distemper

A Shout Out to Dr. Sears

en español

Posting a pic of Belle; wanted to give a shout out to Dr. Al Sears distemper cure. Belle was showing all symptoms of distemper and the vets had given hope pretty much until we scoured the Internet and came across Kindheartsinaction 🙂 We had the serum delivered, and Belle was cured literally overnight; this really works. She had not reached the twitching state at the time we injected the serums; she is 7.5 months, healthy and going strong. Kudos to everyone working to spread the word; also everyone keep hope and praying for you/ and your pets.

Sachin Patel

Austin, Texas

Posted 7/24/2010

Copyright © 2011 Kind Hearts In Action Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
Categories
Canine Distemper

Bartley’s story – so far, so much success!

en español

This is little Bartley. I love this picture because it showcases arguably his best feature – those wonderful Papillon ears!

Received: Wed Jul 07, 2010 from Ellen Parks

When I adopted Bartley nearly two years ago, I had no idea that the twitch he exhibited at every moment was a symptom of distemper. When I took him in to the vet for routine immunizations only a couple of months after I adopted him, I was told this information, and I also learned that he was heart worm positive. We immediately started preparing him for heart worm treatment, and I was told by several

And here you can see the Dachsund body…veterinarians that although Bartley most likely had distemper, nothing could be done. They informed me that he most likely would die from encephalitis, but that it was possible he might still live to be an old dog.

That summer, (2009) the people I adopted him from contacted me. They told me that the other dogs they rescued with Bartley, were all coming down with distemper. They told me what symptoms to look out for, and described to me the procedure that Dr. Sears had developed. Of course I already knew he had distemper, and because of what other vet’s had told me, I was skeptical. Still, I became very worried, so I took Bartley’s previous owners’ advice, and contacted the vet that had performed the procedure on their other dogs. At the time, this vet felt that Barltey was stable and not progressing, so she recommended that I come back if and when he started showing other signs, such as fly biting episodes or seizures. I left hoping it would never come to that.

Sadly, this past June, Bartley started having fly-biting episodes. Over a two week period, he had three episodes, and he progressively spent more time in a disoriented state. His facial twitching become much more severe as well. When I took him in to Dr. Zilkha here in Austin, Texas, she felt certain he had Canine Distemper, and had already performed the procedure on nearly 30 dogs. We wasted no time. She checked on his immune system, to see make sure his chances of responding to the treatment were good, and then Bartley went in to the receive the serum both intravenously and via spinal tap. Dr. Z did a wonderful job. Bartley woke up the next morning without even the slightest headache! Soon after the treatment, she told me that the CSF came back positive for distemper antibodies, so Bartley’s distemper was confirmed.

Since the procedure, he has not had a single fly-biting episode or had moments of disorientation. Even his twitch is less severe. I feel so fortunate that Dr. Sears developed this procedure, and that the people I

There’s the papillon tail! I’m so thankful I found a vet that could help him, and we can share many more camping trips and other adventures together.

adopted Bartley from read about it, and took the time to convince Dr. Z to try it on their dogs. For dogs who have strong enough immune systems, I believe this procedure works. It certainly did for Bartley. Please share his story with anyone you know who has a dog that is sick with distemper.

Copyright © 2011 Kind Hearts In Action Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
Categories
Canine Distemper

MJ is doing great!

Sent in from Joanna Hackney of Austin, Texas, July 7, 2010:
Hi…I’m MJ and I’m borrowing my mom’s e-mail account to send you this message!

I’m still just a puppy but I’ve been through so much for my young age! I started my life with a loving family but then tragedy struck and they were forced to surrender me to the shelter b/c we lost our home in a house fire. I stayed at the shelter for 10 miserable days and was extremely sad & confused…I mean, what did I do wrong to deserve this? The people at the shelter tried to interact with me but said that I was “shut down” and decided that I wasn’t eligible for their adoption program. So I ended up on their “euthanasia list”. I didn’t want to die…I was just really scared!

Then this wonderful team of loving people called Austin Pets Alive! came to my rescue and pulled me out of the shelter! A lovely lady named Becky took me home with her & the next day, I met my foster mom, Joanna. We had a great first week getting to know one another and I didn’t want to ever let her out of my sight. When she would leave me at home, I would just curl up against the front door waiting for her to come back and love me. On the 10th day though, I woke up feeling awful! As the day progressed, I became more and more ill and when I was rushed to the vet, they diagnosed me with distemper and pneumonia! My temperature went all the way up to 108 degrees! Yikes!

The next 3 weeks of my life were horrible! I couldn’t eat and had to have several IV’s administered each day. Then there were days that I couldn’t take myself out to the bathroom and eventually the infection moved into my brain causing neurological damage. My prognosis was grim and other people would have said that I was a lost cause but Austin Pets Alive! refused to give up on me. I am so incredibly grateful to the amazing Dr. Jefferson, the super caring vet techs Sara & Jordana, and the talented Dr. Zilkha at White Angel Animal Hospital who administered a progressive distemper treatment directly into my spinal cord to kill the virus.

And today, I am fully recovered from my distemper! Sure, I have some weird neurological ticks, but I’m such a happy puppy! And best of all, my foster mom decided she could not part from me after all we have been through together…I’ve been adopted! I truly would not be alive though if it was not for Austin Pets Alive! They saved me once from the kill list at the shelter and then again when I was sick.

My mom thinks it’s important to pay it forward. She’s been volunteering at Austin Pets Alive!, but I want to do something too! She says that my distemper treatment cost about $1000. In puppy speak, that’s the same as 75 bags of kibble!! So I’d like to raise enough donations to Austin Pets Alive! to pay back my medical bills and then some more too so that other pups can be saved just like me!

Please help me achieve this goal! I’m in a contest until July 15th for Austin’s Favorite Dog and each dollar you donate is a vote for me and a donation to Austin Pets Alive! Every vote counts!! Just go to the following website and enter your vote for me…MJ! Thanks!

http://www.austinpetsalive.org/photo-contest/

– MJ the Pup!

 

Copyright © 2011 Kind Hearts In Action Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
Categories
Canine Distemper

Our first dog saved in Mexico ajijc Animal Care

en español

Hello Ed

I am happy to inform you that after two months we got the proper vaccine, and immediately we had a case of the distemper. Because we didn’t had the serum ready we used directly in to this dog vein and after 48 hours she was so much better, the pneumonia stayed but after 10 days of antibiotic treatment she is like nothing happened.

The story of this dog starts with a person who brought her in to be put down after she was hit by a car. She came in shock, and  we refuse to put her down. So we started treatment for her injuries. After having  her here for eight days she started with the distemper symptoms. We did the test, and yes she was positive to it. So we treated her, and now we have our first saved case. Now she is doing well and looking for a home .

Here are some pictures of the dog we named “Hope” (Milagro in spanish )
Now we are in the process to do the serum it will take us some time because we need to make sure the donor dog is in good health and we are doing some blood test and giving vaccines because is a street dog so we will wait some time before doing the serum.

Thanks for your help and the DVD. It is great.
We will be glad to help  any way we can.
Sincerely
D.V.M. Luz MAria Perez
www.animalcare.ws

Copyright © 2011 Kind Hearts In Action Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
Categories
Canine Distemper

First serum made in Puerto Rico

en español

Hi, here some pictures of our first time serum production.

 

Sadly Sofía didn’t make it even though she was improving from the neurological phase after her neck tab. The pneumonia was horrible and she was under so many antibiotics, and none made a positive effect on her. But we could treat another 14 weeks old puppy. Tomorrow is another day.
Brownie survived using the NDV direct and Pi (a 4 pounder Min Pincher mix) is under observation because she also was exposed but up to know she has not developed any symptoms except for coughing a few times and we treated her with antibiotics, direct NDV and that was that. I don’t know if using the serum on her would be appropriate.
Thank you for your the information and feedback.
Maritza Rodríguez
Executive Director
The Humane Society of Puerto Rico
NOTE: In February 2011, Maritza Rodriguez reported that 3 of 4 dogs treated with NDV-induced serum had recovered.
Categories
Canine Distemper

Baily gets better

Bailey, sick with distemper

Bailey was 3-months old when she came down with canine distemper in August 2009. Her owner, Vanessa Garcia of Miami, learned of Dr. Sears’ and the NDV treatments and contacted Ed Bond on Aug. 6. She set about ordering the Newcastle Disease Vaccine and searching for a vet willing to do the injection. Here’s some of what she wrote:

Thursday, Aug. 6, 2009

“Thank you SOOOOO much ED! I am freaking out bc we just force fed her and she threw it all up.. I’m a wreck.. anyways I was looking for the vacine bc I remember seeing it in the blog but now I cant find it .. ill keep looking.. keep me posted on any update.. thank you!!!!”

Friday, Aug. 7, 2009

“A little Baily Update: she is stable I think (no more throwing up, just heavy panting)… and we were able to order a dosage of the vaccine to be arriving by Sat @ noon!”

From Dr. Sears: “Sent here the information just now.  Hope all goes well for her.  Thanks for your interest.  Seems the world is full of this disease.  Shame I cannot stop the pain and suffering.”

Saturday, Aug. 8, 2009

“Good Morning Ed!
“I am anxiously waiting for the vaccine .. It should be arriving here @ 12!!! I did receive an e-mail from the Dr. as well.. thank you… and he said that for my 16lb dog its 1cc  IV … Today I have to run and weigh her bc she might have gained a pound bc we have been force feeding her, so I asked him if 1 lb changed the dosage… I hope he can get back to me on time (fingers crossed!)
“I will keep you posted!”
Vanessa

Sunday, Aug. 9, 2009

“Hello Ed,
“Right now it is officially 23 1/2 hours since the vaccine was injected and I think I see her better… She is a bit more alert and chewing on her bone. She is still breathing a little strange but I am sure its not suppose to clear all of the symptoms so quickly.. plus I don’t know what I should be looking for… I am still force feeding her but I have a pretty good feeling its working! I am SO happy. I am just wondering what differences I should be seeing now?
Oh, and just to let you know I was able to get a great vet to give her the shot. He first put her in a quick vapor treatment for about 20min. Then inserted the IV gave her a Vitamin B booster shot through the IV, then the NDV and then about 150 cc of IV fluid to hydrate her. I was so nervous but he was excited to see if it worked bc I know that it would be a big break through.”

Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2009

“Hello Ed,
“Right now Baily is pretty much the same. She has her ups and downs. I noticed that her paws are beginning to peal a little and I don’t know if that is good or bad.

Photo posted in April 2010.

She is still coughing and letting out some mucus from her nose but I think that is good bc she is getting it out of her system. As you can tell I AM VERY OPTIMISTIC !!! Any advice? or anything that I should be looking out for?
“Thank you!” Vanessa

Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2009

“Good morning Ed,
“Today Baily ate some turkey and dog food on her own. I think that if she continues this way she will do just great.”

Thursday, Aug. 13, 2009

“Hello Ed,
“Just to give you a little update. Today Baily is doing SO much better I notice that she is getting a little heavier and she is breathing a much better.”

Monday, Aug. 17, 2009

“Hey Ed,
“How are you? Baily is doing great… every day better! BUT i am concerned bc I just saw that Baily has a sore on her belly and I think another one on her leg.. Do you know what that is? Does that have anything to do with the Distemper?”

Thursday, Aug. 27, 2009

“The sores Dr. Sears said that they were not from distemper and they are getting better. She was doing better and gaining a little weight and eating on her own but now she has decided to stop eating again! She has not had diarrhea any more and yesterday she threw up. I don’t know what to do. Any advice? should we just stay calm and wait it out? Oh and her lungs are sounding better. Thank you!”

But despite the ups and downs of the recovery, Vanessa stayed calm, and Bailey made it through her bout with distemper. She is now a healthy dog, as you can see here, above.

Categories
Canine Distemper

Sundari survives

Another tale of a distemper dog successfully treated in India.

Tue, Apr 13, 2010

Hi Kaveri Uthaiya,

I’m sorry to say I don’t have the photos of my dog taken before the NDV treatment. But I have attached the videos and photos of my dog taken after the NDV treatment. It’s a female puppy. Her name is Sundari.

In those two videos, the black one is the dog which was struck by distemper.

Thank you for the support.

Regards.

Atita

Fri, March 19, 2010

Hi Atita and Ed,

Atita I was at Dr. Pavan’s clinic today and he told me that your dog was cured of Distemper with the serum. I’m really glad to hear this – Congratulations! May I request you to share with us any photos you might have of your dog (before and after the NDV treatment)?

Ed, I received the 2 DVDs yesterday, the movie is brilliantly done, thanks for sending it. I have given Dr. Pavan a copy and also some folks at animal organisations – everyone is quite excited, let’s hope the word spreads fast.

My best,
-Kaveri

Categories
Canine Distemper Saved Dogs

Here’s Basher!

en español

Hello Ed!

I just wanted to send you an “official” account of Basher’s story for your website! We feel that you provide a life saving resource and both my husband and myself are eternally grateful for the resources you provide.

So without further ado, here is Basher’s story.  It’s long, so feel free to abridge it as you see fit.

My husband and I first fell in love with our Lab/Dachshund mix on March 20th, after seeing his photo on the shelter website the Tuesday before. He was a “special needs” pet, and ended up being featured as the Friday Pet of the Week on a local TV station, because his heartworm test had come up positive upon impound.

As we interacted him in the outdoor kennel, it became apparent that he was the dog for us: a perfect gentleman with both us and our 11 month old daughter. As we leashed him to walk him back to the holding kennel, he had a slight cough. “Kennel cough!”, I told my husband. It’s common in shelter pets and nothing to be alarmed at. We were told by shelter staff we could take our dog, now named Basher, home on Tuesday after his scheduled neutering. However, Tuesday morning came and the shelter called, letting us know they would not be neutering him because of his cough and his positive heartworm test. We were welcome to take him home, and they would provide us with a basic antitbiotic to help his cough and to clear his nasal discharge which was crusting over his nostrils. When my husband picked Basher up after work, a clinic employee explained it might be distemper and they’d been having signs of it in the shelter. They handed him a pamphlet about distemper and sent him and Basher on their way.

The second night was the night we suspected something more than kennel cough.  His breathing became labored, and he was not eating.  He was only holding water down for 20 minutes before coughing so heavily it was just white and foamy.  We took him to our family vet on Thursday who prescribed a different antibiotic, an anti-nausea pill, and a pill to calm his stomach.  He was also pumped full of IV fluids and had bloodwork done.  Thursday night was an improvement, with him eating, but still coughing.  He seemed to have a little more energy, but this was not to last, for Friday evening it was back to a lack of appetite, which made is impossible to medicate him, and now his nose was also completely crusted over with greenish-brown phlegm.

I talked with my co-worker on Saturday at the library where I work and she agreed with my worst fears that it might be distemper, but she said there was a forum on her Houston hometown newspaper that said there was an experimental serum that could cure dogs of distemper.  A cure?  I had to know more!  An internet search led me to the Save Distemper Dogs website and I emailed a shot in the dark hoping for a cure for Bash.  Within 30 minutes, I received an email back!  Serum had just been made in Orlando!  The moment I was off work, the whole family piled into the car to speed Basher towards a hopeful recovery.

When we arrived at the vet’s office, Basher was coughing white foamish liquid every 20-40 seconds and his nose was entirely crusted over with phlegm.  Fortunately, he did not have any neurological signs, so he was eligible for the serum treatment.  We were told we could pick him up in 24 hours, after the 3rd injection would be made.

24 hours later, we went to pick Basher up from the vet’s office.  His coat was much shinier, and he was not coughing.   The biggest difference came when we went to lift Basher into the SUV for the ride home.  As we went to lift him in, he jumped right in!  This would have been impossible for him 24 hours earlier!

The next week was a 180 turnaround for Bash.  He stopped coughing entirely by day 5, and his appetite was ravenous since the day we brought him home, happily gobbling up the remainder of his antibiotics and medications that we had lovingly laced in the food!  🙂

It’s been 2 and a half weeks since his treatment and we have gotten to see the dog that Basher truly is – an energetic happy member of our family who lets my daughter pat him (as gently as a toddler can pat!) and loves to go for car rides to anywhere the family goes.  2 days ago, we took him to the dog park for the first time where he outran a 5 month old Staffordshire Terrier puppy, with nary a cough to be seen or heard!

Coming from what my husband and I felt sure was a death sentence of distemper, to the happy energetic dog he is now, we feel so blessed to have a long future with our wonderful family dog, Basher.

I’ve attached photos and a link to a YouTube video (that is grainy, stupid cell phone cameras!) of Basher’s progress.  The only before photo is him lying down in the car with his nose crusties.  That was the day we brought him home from the shelter.  The other two are from April 6th, 10 days after his treatment.  The video is also from the 6th.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTfkrlgv_8U

Thank you!!

– Eden Smith