Hi sheila23,
Yes, don’t lose hope. Your boy is young and in early stages. There’s lots of reason for hope.
Absolutely, the mineral waters will be just as beneficial for your other dogs as well. I was at a lecture once and they discussed ionizable calcium (calcium bicarbonate) which is found in good quality mineral waters. Calcium bicarbonate is found in the blood (about 1% of the total body calcium) and helps the immune system to fight invaders like bacteria. The calcium traps the bacteria etc (referred to as the calcium wave) until the immune systems white blood cells can get there to eat the bacteria (called phagocytosis). In fact, the medical professionals that I follow suggest fevers are actually beneficial as the muscle heats up to pull ionizable calcium from the bones when needed to fight an infection. That’s why you shouldn’t treat a fever unless it gets too high. By consuming ionizable calcium your body (and that of your dogs) is better able to fight off the infection without needing to generate a fever. More info than you asked for, hope it is useful info. 🙂
