Dogs getting giardia?

[The Weasel]

A few thoughts on the sick dog and dogs drinking from water sources:

1) Dogs have major amounts of bacteria in their mouths. Don't be offended; it's how they are. It's largely because of poor canine dental hygiene, but, for that matter, most people do too. The difference is that dogs tend to slobber when drinking, and their saliva gets into water sources. This is bad, bluntly, even if the water source is moving. Dogs - like people - should drink water from containers. Put your dog's water in his bowl when you stop for water.

2) Giardia and other water pathogens will affect almost any mammal. This is part of the 'hard choice' in bringing a dog: Why take precautions for your own health that you won't take for your dog's? If you want to protect him/her, purify their water too. Dogs do NOT have some kind of superior kind of GI tract to humans. Impure water will make them sick, too.

3) Dogs can't talk. When they are sick, their sickness can only be identified from external symptoms. If your dog is sick, why try to make them "tough it out" when it can be a dangerous condition? Either you care for the dog - and will take it to a vet when it's ill (especially if the nature of the illness is unknown) or your shouldn't have the dog in the first place. Another hard choice, but one that comes with having a dog as a life companion.

The Weasel

[walkalotapus]

When I section hiked with my dog this summer, my very helpful vet provided a giardia vaccine and also provided me with a round of Flagyl in the event it was needed for me or the dog. Loperamide (immodium) is also safe for dogs (according to my vet) if used carefully. I treated water (Aquamira) for both of us and kept her out of poop and dead things and didn't have any problems at all.

[docllamacoy]

We're pretty sure Coy got giardia while we were hiking in Arizona back in '02. She had all the symptoms of it and did drink out of a nasty water source one day. It actually ended up going away on its own without treatment, although we took her to a vet to get checked out. She has never had it since and has had some pretty questionable water on her two thru-hikes following that.

[rev_sunshine]

Two dogs drinking water from the same canal

One dog, sick as a...

Second dog, healthy as a...


Just Depends On The Dog,
The Reverend

[Lilred]

I can't understand why some hikers are so freaked out about dogs getting in the water source. There are a gazillion wild animals getting into the water sources as is, what's the problem with one more dog? Especially if it is running water. I'm sorry, I just don't get it.

[fiddlehead]

maybe you've never been very thirsty, finally get to a small seep, and someone's dog rushes in front of you to lie in it. happened to me a few times and is not fun.

[Lilred]

maybe you've never been very thirsty, finally get to a small seep, and someone's dog rushes in front of you to lie in it. happened to me a few times and is not fun.

Would it not be fun if you finally get to a small seep and there was a bear laying in it? Or a deer standing in it? Perhaps it's the fact that a dog is not a wild animal? I've read journals where people got to a water source only to find it filled with dead caterpillars, and drank it anyhow.

I'm not a dog lover or hater. I just think that an animal is an animal and a dog is not any worse than the hundreds of other animals that visit a particular water source.

[Marta]

Would it not be fun if you finally get to a small seep and there was a bear laying in it? Or a deer standing in it? Perhaps it's the fact that a dog is not a wild animal? I've read journals where people got to a water source only to find it filled with dead caterpillars, and drank it anyhow.

I'm not a dog lover or hater. I just think that an animal is an animal and a dog is not any worse than the hundreds of other animals that visit a particular water source.

The difference is that dogs aren't wild animals. Most wild animals (dead caterpillars and underwater salamanders excepted) will take off as a human approaches the water source. An unleashed/badly-trained dog will rush up in front of you. Or if the dog isn't thirsty, it will simply run ahead and frolick around in the water because 1) it's fun and 2) you're heading for it and if they get there, you'll pay attention to them. It's like a cat sitting on your newspaper--they don't really want to read it (I think), they just want to get between you and it.

Marta/Five-Leaf

[fiddlehead]

Would it not be fun if you finally get to a small seep and there was a bear laying in it? Or a deer standing in it? Perhaps it's the fact that a dog is not a wild animal? I've read journals where people got to a water source only to find it filled with dead caterpillars, and drank it anyhow.

I'm not a dog lover or hater. I just think that an animal is an animal and a dog is not any worse than the hundreds of other animals that visit a particular water source.

Point taken!
BUT, i've never had the bear or deer problem (that you mention) in my hiking experiences thus far.

The dog's muddying up the only water for miles has happened to me numerous times on the trails.

[Lilred]

Point taken!
BUT, i've never had the bear or deer problem (that you mention) in my hiking experiences thus far.

The dog's muddying up the only water for miles has happened to me numerous times on the trails.

I can see where that would be a problem if you don't have a filter. Marta, even if the wild animal runs away, the water is still muddied up. You have a good point though, of a dog's playfullnes being a problem at water sources.

Funny, I had a hiker get annoyed with me for using my filter at a water source cause I muddied it up. He even suggested that I should stop filtering so he could get his water, even though I had been there a good five minutes ahead of him and was almost halfway through with the chore. When he found out I was a section hiker, he said one word, "figures". I made sure I filtered extra slow after that. Elitist thru-hikers really tick me off.

[superman]

Winter has drunk the un-filtered water along the AT, PCT, FT and the LT with out any health problems. I suspect a big part of dogs getting giardia is personal hygiene...similar to people. There was a lot of nasty tasting water on the FT but taste isn't the same as unhealthy. If the water looks bad I filter Winter's water as I do my own. What water is bad is just a wild guess on my part. Some dogs will do some nasty things and mess up their stomachs. Winter is a lady and doesn't do nasty things.

[frieden]

I can't understand why some hikers are so freaked out about dogs getting in the water source. There are a gazillion wild animals getting into the water sources as is, what's the problem with one more dog? Especially if it is running water. I'm sorry, I just don't get it.

Thank you. Well said.

Things like diseases are red flags that the area is out of balance. Have you ever heard that the presence of weeds shows an unhealthy lawn? Stop using chemicals, add compost, and it fixes itself. It is the same in our bodies, as well as the ecosystem. Humans have kicked the world out of balance, and we either have to deal with it, or fix it.

We just moved to OK. There are "pets" (owned dogs and cats) running loose everywhere - and visably covered in engorged ticks. "D**n dogs/cats! All they do is spread ticks and worms." Um - not if you take care of them, you backwoods neanderthal. We stopped at a farmer's market last week, and there were a number of people selling "AKC registered" dogs off the backs of their pickups (very common here). The puppies were literally skin and bones, and some were deformed. They sell for $300 and up, because they are "purebred, AKC registered....blah, blah, blah". It took everything I had not to beat those people into a bloody pulp for their abuse of those puppies. Of course, I reported it, to no avail.

Why are our water sources so polluted and diseased? Well, it isn't because Fido ran through it this morning! He is probably cleaner than the bottom of your boots.

[frieden]

maybe you've never been very thirsty, finally get to a small seep, and someone's dog rushes in front of you to lie in it. happened to me a few times and is not fun.

That's why we have this forum - to encourage responsible dog hiking!

Even if leashes are not required in the area you are in, unless your dog has perfect recall and obedience training, keep Fido on a leash. Ed is used to hiking on a leash, so it isn't a problem for us, but I would never leash him to do something like climb a boulder field. I would also never let him drink unfiltered water. However, if Ed is overheating, and I think I'm going to lose him, I'm putting him into the cool, running stream, regardless of how rude that may seem. I always try to respect others, but not at the expense of my partner's life. I'm sure most people would agree with that.

The problem seems to stem from what "respect" means. Respect isn't about what you think is right, or what is right/wrong; it is what the other person feels comfortable with. One person may know, without a doubt, that their dog is not polluting the water any more than the thousands of animals and boots that have touched the water so far. While that may be true, we need to think about the hiker coming up the trail who believes that the dog's contact with the water does pose harm, and cannot even imagine what other animals have done in that water recently. (some people cannot comprehend things, unless they see them) We could just tell them to deal with it, but what if the person passes up the water source because of your dog, and then has health issues? Yes, they could have filtered the water, and their current situation is their own fault, but respect isn't about that. It is about trying to make the other person comfortable, without becoming a doormat yourself. Remember, we all have fears, and they don't always make sense. Isn't it nice when someone is understanding with you during those times?

I didn't mean to get preachy, but just wanted to toss out my 2 cents.