Species:           Canine

Specimen:       Serum

Container:       Red top or gel tube

Collection protocol:  Venepuncture      

Special handling/shipping requirements:  Standard

General information about the disease:

Parvovirus infection is a serious, highly infectious viral disease of dogs.  Vaccination is effective at preventing infection and vaccination programs have been developed to thoroughly protect dogs.   

General information about when this test is indicated:

This test is used to assess if vaccinal immunity directed against canine parvovirus is present and sufficient.  A positive test indicates a haemagglutination inhibition titre of 1:80 or greater.  Dogs with a negative test are not protected from infection but they may be protected from clinical disease since anamnestic antibody or cell mediated immunity may be protective.

Comparison with other related tests:   A faecal parvovirus ELISA is available to test for the presence of virus if clinical disease is suspected. Characteristic lesions are seen in the intestinal tract in fatal cases of infection.