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“The Fairfield Animal Shelter is currently closed due to four confirmed cases of canine parvovirus found in dogs housed at the animal shelter,” the police department said in a statement.
“The parvovirus is a highly contagious viral disease that is passed in dog feces and can cause life-threatening illnesses in dogs," the statement said.
“The initial case was found in a dog that was being housed for another municipality,” police said, although it is not clear whether that dog was from Bridgeport.
The virus can be easily passed from dog to dog and from shelter to shelter by shoes, clothing, dog dishes and other items that come in contact with the virus.
The Fairfield Animal Shelter is being sanitized at this time and will reopen 14 days after the last parvovirus positive dog was diagnosed. The shelter is currently scheduled to reopen Aug. 25, police said.
Animals currently found roaming in town will be sent to shelters in nearby towns that have space. Easton has been handling all impounds since the outbreak, Fairfield police said.
While the shelter is closed, the animal control department will still handle all complaints as usual during the shutdown. Animal Control can be contacted at 203-254-4857.
The Bridgeport Animal Control will be closed until Aug. 20 and will be unable to take in any animals or to adopt out any animals due its outbreak of the canine parvovirus. The Bridgeport shelter is undergoing a thorough cleaning as well, a city spokesman said.
The virus there affected three of the 53 dogs at Animal Control, but in order to keep all the animals safe, every dog is quarantined, spokesman Kevin Coughlin said.
Animal Control’s shelter is undergoing "an overabundance of cleaning" during the quarantine and dogs are being given extra veterinary care, he said.
“We are being overly cautious and overly thorough,” said Gina Gambino, Animal Control Officer for the City of Bridgeport. “The entire shelter area is cleaned twice a day with full strength bleach and dogs are regularly being checked and rechecked for any signs of the illness. Animal Control is doing everything we can to keep our animals safe and healthy.”
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