How Infection Happens - Mar Vista Animal Medical Center

	This is Page 4 of 8 Pages in the Canine Parvovirus Information Center
	Basic Virology A Preface	Canine Parvovirus: What Is It?	The Virus in the Environment: Disinfection	How Infection Happens
(original graphic by marvistavet.com)	The Physical Illness and It's Treatment	Diagnosis of Canine Parvovirus	Caring for the Recovered Dog	Vaccination Options /Prevention

How Infection Happens

PARVOVIRUS: HOW DOGS GET INFECTED AND WHAT HAPPENS TO THEM

Whether or not infection happens depends on the interaction of three things: host vitality (including immune experience/vaccination status), virulence of the virus (including virus strain and how many viral particles the host is exposed to), and environmental factors (other stresses and/or concurrent conditions). Obviously these three aspects interplay somewhat (a stressful environment will reduce host vitality, a dry environment will reduce the number of viral particles etc.)

HOW DOGS GET INFECTED
(original graphic by marvistavet.com)

WHERE DOES PARVOVIRUS COME FROM?

Remember that this virus has been around since the 1970’s, is very hard to disinfect away, and is shed in extremely large numbers by infected dogs. This means that there is virus everywhere: on every carpet, on every floor, in every yard and park. Virus is shed in the stool for the first two weeks or less after the initial infection but only a tiny portion of infected stool (which could be months old depending on the environmental temperature and humidity) is needed to infect a non-immune dog. Some dogs become what is called "subclinically infected" which means they do not appear particularly sick. These animals tend not to be confined since no one knows they are infected thus they can spread virus around a large area depending on where they leave their droppings. Basically, because the virus is very hardy, it travels where ever dirt travels and not a lot of virus is needed to create infection in a susceptible dog.

Dogs at dog park
(Photocredit: Benpershouse via Wikimedia Commons)

WHY ONLY PUPPIES?

The most important factors in whether parvovirus infection occurs seem to be the experience the dog’s immune system has had with the virus plus the number of viral particles the host is exposed to. In the 1970’s and early 1980’s when the virus was new, all dogs young and old were susceptible but now, because the virus is present everywhere, all dogs, even the unvaccinated ones, have at least some immunological experience with this virus. Any exposure no matter how small is likely to generate some antibodies. Also, vaccination is a widespread process nowadays and it is likely that a dog has had at least one vaccine at some point. Will these antibodies be enough for protection? In general, the answer seems to be yes, depending on the dog's age at vaccination and nature of the exposure; infection in dogs over age one year is rare. It is important to realize, however, that this observation should not be taken to mean that adult dogs should not continue their vaccinations. Even though infection is unusual in adult dogs, adult dogs should still continue their vaccinations as this is a life threatening disease for which treatment is expensive and no chances should be taken. Widespread vaccination is part of the reason why infection in adult dogs is rare.

The younger the dog, the less immunologic experience and the more susceptibility to infection.

(original graphic by marvistavet.com)

NATURAL PROTECTION?

When puppies are born, they are completely unable to make antibodies against any infectious invader. They would be totally unprotected except that nature has created a system to protect them. Their mother secretes a special milk for the first day or two after giving birth. This milk is called "colostrum." It contains all the antibodies that the mother dog has circulating in her own body and in this way, she gives her own immune experience to her offspring. These antibodies are protective until they wear off sometime in the first 4 months of the puppy’s life.

How much colostrum an individual puppy gets depends on its birth order and how strong a nurser it is; not all puppies get the same amount of antibodies. Every nine days the antibody levels possessed by the puppies drops by half. When the antibody level drops to a certain level, they no longer have enough antibody to protect them and if they are exposed to a large enough number of viral particles, they will get infected. The age at which maternal antibodies disappear is different for each individual puppy and is not predictable.

We recommend that puppies be restricted from public outdoor areas until their vaccination series is completed at age 16 weeks.

There is a period of a week or so during which the puppy has no antibody protection left over from its mother but still is not yet competent to respond to vaccination. This window is where even the most well cared for puppies get infected.

INCUBATION

The virus enters the body through the mouth as the puppy cleans itself or eats food off the ground or floor. A minuscule amount of infected stool is all it takes.

There is a 3-7 day incubation period before the puppy seems obviously ill.

Upon entering the body, the virus seeks out the nearest rapidly dividing group of cells. The cells in the lymph nodes of the throat fit the bill and the virus sets up here first replicating to large numbers. After a couple of days, so much virus has been produced that significant amounts of virus have been released free into the bloodstream. Over the next 3-4 days, the virus seeks new organs containing the rapidly dividing cells it needs: the bone marrow and the delicate intestinal cells.

Parvo Clip Art
(original graphic by marvistavet.com)

Within the bone marrow, the virus is responsible for destruction of young cells of the immune system. By killing these cells, it knocks out the body's best defense and ensures itself a reign of terror in the GI tract where its most devastating effects occur. Parvoviral infections are characterized by a drop in white blood cell count due to the bone marrow infection. Seeing this on a blood test may help "clinch" the diagnosis of parvoviral infection. Also, a veterinarian may choose to monitor white blood cell count to track the progress of the infection with recovery of the white cell count correlating with defeat of the infection. The white cell count, which in a normal dog is measured in the tens of thousands, may drop to nearly zero in the brunt of the disease.

Normal Intestinal Villus
(original graphic by marvistavet.com)

It is in the GI tract where the heaviest damage occurs. The normal intestine possesses little finger-like protrusions called "villi" (singular: "villus"). Having these tiny fingers greatly increases the surface area available for the absorption of fluid and nutrients. To make the surface area available for absorption greater still, the villi possess "microvilli" which are microscopic protrusions. The cells of the villi are relatively short-lived and are readily replaced by new cells. The source of the new cells is the rapidly dividing area at the foot of the villus called the "Crypts of Lieberkuhn." It is right at the crypt where the parvovirus strikes.

Without new cells coming from the crypt, the villus becomes blunted and unable to absorb nutrients. Diarrhea in large quantities results, not to mention nausea. The barrier separating the digestive bacteria from the blood stream breaks down. The diarrhea becomes bloody and bacteria can enter the body causing widespread infection (remember that that virus has simultaneously destroyed the bone marrow's ability to respond immunologically).

Villus affected by parvo
(original graphic by marvistavet.com)

The virus kills one of two ways:

Diarrhea and vomiting lead to extreme fluid loss and dehydration until shock and death result.
Loss of the intestinal barrier allows bacterial invasion of potentially the entire body. Septic toxins from these bacteria result in death.

HOW IS SURVIVAL POSSIBLE?

Even parvovirus cannot disrupt the entire immune system. Plus, every day that goes by allows more antibody to be produced. This antibody can bind and inactivate the virus. Whether survival is possible amounts to a race between the damaged immune system trying to recover and respond versus the fluid loss and bacterial invasion.

Next in the series: Treatment

Page last updated: 5/27/2023