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Officials with the Anderson County Animal Shelter announced on social media Monday that the facility will be closed to the public for the next two weeks due to a case of canine parvovirus.
In the post, officials say that workers had “suspected that parvovirus had presented [during the] intake [of an animal],” and confirmed those suspicions with a veterinarian. The shelter says that since it is such a small facility, they do not have the room to set up a quarantine area, so, as a result the doors to the animal shelter will be closed to the public until August 15th and they will not be able to handle any new intakes.
Workers will be on-site at the facility taking care of the animals currently at the shelter and answering phone calls. Workers will also be able speak to people interested in adopting a pet to make arrangements for once the facility is reopened.
In the post, shelter officials write, “We will continue to monitor the health of our population and have added additional protocols as recommended.”
Parvovirus is a highly contagious disease that primarily affects unvaccinated dogs and puppies under four months but can spread among all dogs. The virus affects dogs’ gastrointestinal systems and is spread through direct contact or contact with contaminated feces, environments or people, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association, which also states that “the virus can also contaminate kennel surfaces, food and water bowls, collars and leashes, and the hands and clothing of people who handle infected dogs. It is resistant to heat, cold, humidity, and drying, and can survive in the environment for long periods of time. Even trace amounts of feces from an infected dog may harbor the virus and infect other dogs that come into the infected environment. The virus is readily transmitted from place to place on the hair or feet of dogs or via contaminated cages, shoes, or other objects.”
Some symptoms of parvovirus include lethargy; loss of appetite; abdominal pain and bloating; fever or low body temperature (hypothermia); vomiting; and severe, often bloody, diarrhea. Persistent vomiting and diarrhea can cause rapid dehydration, and damage to the intestines and immune system can cause septic shock, according to the AVMA.
In a separate post on the animal shelter’s Facebook page, officials said that the facility is in need of items to care for the animals at the shelter, including new litter boxes, dog bowls, collars, and medicine.
Follow this link to the Anderson County Animal Shelter’s Amazon Wish List page.
For more on the canine parvovirus, follow this link to the American Veterinary Medical Association’s website.
Canine parvovirus | American Veterinary Medical Association (avma.org)
The original post concludes by stating: “We hope you will join us in thinking positive thoughts for the health of our animals.”
(AC Animal Shelter Facebook post) We sincerely apologize, but the shelter will be closed for two weeks. We suspected that parvovirus had presented on an intake, and confirmed with a veterinarian.
We are a very small facility with no quarantine area available. While we recognize the hardship closing the facility will be for the public, we recognize a potential larger problem for a healthy facility. We will continue to monitor the health of our population and have added additional protocols as recommended.
The team will be there caring for all the dogs and cats, and handling calls. Again, we apologize, but will not be able to handle any new intakes.
We have several folks currently interested in cats, and we will be happy to talk through an adoption plan on the phone in order to make arrangements for a happy adoption process.
We will reopen on August 15th. We hope you will join us in thinking positive thoughts for the health of our animals.
