Dog owners in North East Lincolnshire have been left terrified their pets are becoming ill with a mysterious sickness and diarrhoea bug after going out for walks.
It comes after reports of dogs becoming sick with the illness after visiting beaches in the North of England – but it now appears to be spreading inland.
Several areas are seeing increases in cases of dogs falling ill from gastroenteritis-like symptoms.
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Most cases are mild, but some dogs may need hospitalization with a drip. In the worst situations, it can become haemorrhagic leading to secondary complications or even death, but that is very rare.
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Mrs Ward owns a six-month-old puppy who became seriously ill following a walk around the block in Cleethorpes.
She said: “His illness started on Friday, January 14. He didn’t really want his food in the morning but I managed to get him to eat something, and I noticed throughout the day that he was really, really lethargic. And he’s a puppy – he’s usually mental.
“On Saturday he just would not eat at all, and he just kept vomiting throughout the day. By the time it got to Saturday night, he was just so lethargic and was being sick. At 8.30pm I took him to North Thoresby Veterinary Hospital .
“He was given an anti-sickness jab, a bunch of pills, and I was told to keep an eye on him and that if he was sick within the next 24 hours, to bring him straight back. It stopped the sickness, but he just refused food.
(Image: Jon Corken/Grimsby Live)
“He was bouncing around again and then two days ago, I came down in the morning and his cage was like a crime scene. There was diarrhoea and urine everywhere. This morning was his first clean morning, but he’s still refusing food. The tablets that I’ve got for him, they are gastroenteritis tablets.
“I haven’t taken my dog to the beach – he literally was walked around the block in Cleethorpes and he’s caught it from the street. Seven days on and I’ve still got a poorly puppy.
“I’m hoping that he’s now coming through the other side of it but from what I read on the internet, there’s a vet that said it can be anything up to 10 days before they start to behave in a normal pattern again.
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“The vet was really, really concerned and gave me a lot more red flags than they would normally, just saying that if he’s sick again in the next 24 hours, it could be critical, you’ll need to bring him in.
“About 48 hours later I saw a friend and they said, ‘Actually, it sounds like he’s got this virus, you better look into it’. And when I looked into it, he’s got it. All the symptoms are the same. He’s been given anti-sickness jabs in the past but he’s never been given gastroenteritis tablets before.
“When I spoke to the veterinary nurse the other day, she said there’s quite a lot of it in the area. I said it’s like ‘coronavirus for dogs’, and she said ‘Yep, that’s what it seems to be like’.
“It was terrifying.”
Another dog owner, Jem Walker, told Grimsby Live: “On Thursday morning Chase was lethargic but he’d had a busy day on Wednesday so I didn’t look to much into it. It started off as vomiting and loose stools but then escalated to vomiting the moment he had a drink of water, he kept nothing down at all.
“I’ve spoken to the vets and the advice I’ve been given is to keep him hydrated as best as possible and if anything worrying happens, bring him in, but they’re dealing with an awful lot of cases of this virus.
“I’ve also had people message me to say that their dogs have had the same issues from People’s Park and Freshney Green.”
(Image: Jem Walker)
Other local dog owners took to social media to talk about their experiences.
“Our 8-month-old puppy is like this! At vets today. Been like this since Wednesday,” one person wrote.
“My boys had it… People’s Park but he is now fine. A lot of hysteria over it. But if your dogs fit and healthy normally then it will be fine… a week on and still quiet but he’s OK,” wrote another.
Anyone with concerns should contact their local vet for prompt treatment if your dog shows any signs of illness, such as vomiting and diarrhoea.
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