The Butler County Humane Society announced Thursday that it will remain closed until April 5 in response to a confirmed case of canine parvo virus.

“Parvo is an unfortunate reality in sheltering, and every shelter faces it from time to time,” the society wrote in a prepared statement. “Please know that we have taken immediate action to try and prevent further outbreaks from occurring.”

On Wednesday, the nonprofit closed its Connoquenessing Township shelter after one of the dogs housed there began to excrete blood. The humane society takes in abandoned and mistreated animals.

Executive director Jennifer DiCuccio said the dog, Charlie, was taken to an undisclosed Pittsburgh veterinary hospital to be treated for the highly contagious virus, which often leads to death. She said Charlie is currently in stable condition. The virus typically has an incubation period of three to five days and symptoms do not appear for several days.

Charlie was one of several dogs and cats rescued in January from a trailer home in Prospect. DiCuccio said that while none of the other animals have contracted the virus at this time, the society will be in lockdown for the next week as a precaution. She said the shelter will not accept any more animals, nor will it allow any adoptions.

The home where the animals were found wasn't heated and the inside temperature at the time was only several degrees above freezing. There was no food for any of the animals. Only the cats could access water from a small bowl on the kitchen counter. Police observed that the floor was covered in the feces of the isolated animals. The parvo virus is transmitted via contact with an infected dog's feces.

The virus is able to survive many conditions and can contaminate any number of surfaces, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association. It can withstand heat, cold, humidity and drying and can survive in the environment for long periods of time. Even trace amounts of infected feces is enough to infect other dogs that come into contact with it.

DiCuccio said the society is raising funds to disinfect the entire building while paying for Charlie's care and the other animals' medical bills. On Wednesday alone, Charlie's medical bill was $800 and rising, DiCuccio said. And the group of animals with which Charlie was rescued is costing the organization a running tab that has climbed to $11,000 so far, according to Nicole Thurner, a lawyer who does volunteer legal work with the humane society.

DiCuccio said the humane society is looking to the public to help pay for the specialized disinfectant needed to complete the process, as the smallest bottle costs more than $16.

For more information or to help, visit www.butlercountyhs.org and look for the organization's Amazon wish-list link at the bottom of the page.