Kennel Cough 101 Dogs are social and everyone’s a friend! We love this friendly side, but interaction means they’re going to be exposed to respiratory pathogens. Just as being in an airplane exposes humans to respiratory disease – there’s no way for your dog to avoid exposure to respiratory bugs! What is Kennel Cough? Kennel Cough is coughing due to an infectious agent. It seldom causes the loss of life, but it does last three weeks and keeps us up at night. Coughing all night is why people typically take them to the Veterinarian – they wake us up! Canine infectious respiratory disease complex - another name for kennel cough, is caused by many different infections. Early distemper looks like kennel cough as does 12 other organisms. The key is preventing coughing from getting a foothold. How Do Dogs Get Kennel Cough? Being social, dogs share their space with other dogs readily and they share their bugs as well! A common area where they socialize and are exposed to coughing bacteria is the boarding kennel – and how the name came to be. Exposure happens at: Groomers Dog parks Veterinary clinics Dog shows Boarding kennels Any other place that dogs are within 15 feet of each other when they cough You can see the need for insurance against coughing! Treatment Coughing dogs can have secondary bacterial infections and that is the focus of the treatment. The cough has to run its course. Be aware that the support you give in treatment is just that – support until the puppy can remove the virus from the body and heal the sore throat. Treatment involves: Vaccination is often used to bring the immune system to the respiratory track and to bring immunity of all your dogs to the same level. Vaccinating every dog when coughing happens brings your “herd” immunity up and shuts down the new cases. Antibiotics - Doxycycline or others Cough Suppressants You do not want to stop the cough just slow it down. Puppies will cough so much they make their throats sore, which makes them cough even more! The Guaifenesin in cough tabs slows coughing but also breaks up congestion so it can be removed when coughing. Nutrition These guys have sore throats so be sure the tiny dogs are eating regularly and feed soft food. You don’t want to deal with hypoglycemia as well. Other Remedies - We often put Vicks® or eucalyptus oil on a cloth and let the puppy sleep with it. We find the tiny dog breaths easier and sleeps better. Prevention With respiratory disease transmitted so easily, preventing through vaccination is the best control. Kennel Cough vaccines will reduce the chance of disease and they include protection against the three most common causes; Adenovirus, Parainfluenza and Bordetella bronchiseptica. Influenza is now an issue in dogs and can be prevented with vaccination. Boarding kennels often require this vaccine to protect your dog from transmitting or getting influenza. If you show dogs, you can expect influenza vaccine to be required to enter the show arena. Yearly vaccination also includes protection against distemper preventing coughing and neurologic disease distemper causes. That totals five diseases we vaccinate for that can cause coughing. These are the “bad boys” we want to prevent. Prevention Through Disinfection An important part of any disease prevention plan is disinfection. Disinfectants keep your dog’s living areas clean and wild bacteria and virus numbers low! If dogs never get a large dose of a respiratory virus, your dog will handle the exposure without coughing. Large doses of viruses will always bring respiratory disease just as coughing in your face gives you a cold every time. Though it does not penetrate, household bleach at 1:30 dilution is an effective disinfectant for your pet’s crates, food and water bowls, or sleeping area. Coughing is rarely life threatening to a puppy, but the constant coughing will drive you crazy and keep you up at night. Once started, the cough lingers three weeks and is not easily treated. Lower the coughing risk by vaccinating them with a Kennel Cough vaccine. You and your puppy will sleep easier if you do!
Posted on: Fri, 05 Dec 2014 11:47:24 +0000
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