If your pet has any of these symptoms, it should be examined and a microscopic fecal examination should be performed. Whether or not the problem turns out to be Giardia, those signs are more than enough to indicate that your pet needs to be examined professionally and thoroughly. We diagnose the infection by looking for microscopic Giardia cysts in fresh stool samples. It is often necessary for us to examine several samples before we find the cysts, since they are shed on an irregular basis. This means that the sample may be negative one day and positive the next.
Blood test are often necessary to determine the cause of the illness.
Diarrhea and other clinical signs may get worse or disappear. Giardia may cause damage without revealing symptoms in the early stages. Occasionally this can go on for a long time before severe illness occurs. Once in a while, pets get over the disease without treatment, but this is rare. Thus, your pet might appear normal while continuing to shed Giardia in its stool.