Dog Giardia, Coprophagia

Question
Hello Dr. Grand,

Thank you in advance for your kind assistance.

I recently got a 14-month old female Pomeranian from a breeder.  I took her to my vet and her stool test result is positive for GIARDIA.  This dog eats her own poo and I have tried to stop her but even when I say "NO" and make a loud, startling noise, she still eats it.  She is small (3.5 lbs) and is very low to the ground and close to her poo.  I explained this coprophagia problem to the vet and he says that since the dog will be taking Panacur, she can still eat her poo and the poo will NOT reinfect her... is that true?!  I read that if the dog eats her poo, then she is reinfecting herself with Giardia.

Question:  If she is on Panacur, then is it okay for her to eat her own poo and is she reinfecting herself?  

Is it possible (or not likely) that I can clear this dog of giardia if it continues to eat a few bites of it's poo almost daily?

I really love this dog's temperament and looks but I wish it did not have Giardia.  I'm concerned that I may contract it from her even though I wash my hands a lot.  Also, I'm concerned that I may never be able to break her of the coprophagia.

The vet prescribed the following treatment for the Giardia:

1.  Giardia Vaccine  (given to my dog at the vet visit)
2.  Panacur  3-days
3.  Wait 3-weeks, then give Panacur again for 3-days and
   a 2nd Giardia Vaccine.
4.  Stool test.
5.  If Stool test is positive, then repeat steps 1-4.

Since my dog eats her poo, is it likely that I will not cure the Giardia in one cycle and will likely need to repeat the treatment?

Is it a waste of my time and money to be treating her with Panacur if she is eating her poo during the treatment due to reinfection?

I have the dog for one week from the breeder.  I suspect that the breeder did not take good care of this pom.  The pom does not have a good appetite.  She also has occasional regurgitation where she seems to be choking... I'm not sure what is causing this... the vet thought it might be reflux... is reflux a serious condition?

I'm trying to decide if I should return this dog to the breeder.  I feel like it is "mission impossible" to cure this dog of giardia because she eats her own poo. I do love this dog and I wish I could cure her of her Giardia and then I could more easily "tolerate" the coprophagia.

Your advice will be key to my decision making process.

With sincere thanks,
Linda Vinh

Answer
Hi Linda,

Thank you for your very concise and descriptive synopsis of your puppy's case.

First, I question the validity of some Giardia testing.  They are very hard to find on the microscope and some ELISA testing can have false positives.  I honestly don't have the test anymore.  I found that it doesn't really help.  And I have never used the vaccine because it is not currently recommended as a core or even non core vaccine by the specialists.  Giardia if it is causing a problem normally causes diarrhea and if your pom does not have diarrhea, I question whether giardia is even an issue.

As to the coprophagia.  This one is tough.  Some dogs like their own poo.  I cant tell you why.  And they aren't talking ;-)  There are some powders and such you can put on the food to try and make it taste bad but mostly nothing works.  I have some patients that have grown out of the habit and some that years later still do it.  I wish I had a better answer for you but the solution is just deny access.  Which means following her and picking it up.

In reference to the regurgitation, I wonder if this is truly regurgitation or possibly reverse sneezing?  

I would recommend a second opinion in your case.  This way possibly you could get some differing ideas on how and if you should treat the giardia.  Possibly some different ideas on how to treat the coprophagia.  And also someone to determine if the regurgitation is an issue.  I think also it would give you peace of mind.

Good Luck to you