Here in Nashville we are having a huge outbreak of Kennel Cough. News stations and emails from our Vet are really stating huge numbers of cases. We just got through weeks of antibiotics for our two Aussies that are recovering. Nasty stuff..

You can get them on the Bordatella vaccine, which will prevent Kennel Cough.

I never really bothered with the Bordatella vaccine on previous dogs, but my current dog is much better behaved and more social than any prior dog, so he accompanies me a lot of places (parks, dog-friendly businesses, etc.) As a result of him being out in public and exposed to a lot more other dogs, I've kept him up to date on Bordatella.

^even with the bordetella, they can still get kennel cough. Rock-rock got it last time we went on vacation. The vaccine is a requirement. The owner of the kennel felt so bad he tried to reverse he charge on my credit card.

Our vet sent out a notice that Birmingham vets reported outbreaks of a respiratory virus lately and to take precautions. Apparently, it can be quite nasty … borderline fatal.

The word we've been getting is that it is Canine Influenza virus, which is a different animal than the bordetella. Of course there could be an outbreak of both at the same time.

If you are regional to this (we are in the Memphis area and still ducking for cover), avoid taking your dog to areas populated with dogs. It can get ugly, though usually not fatal. It usually kills by allowing secondary invaders (bacteria) into the system and leading to pneumonia.

Its all over the South. My two dogs were boarded at the vet I use the third week in July (Montgomery, AL). Both got it. One died and the other is still recovering. Its viral and probably is NOT canine influenza. But something else and is not the usual Kennel Cough.

I suggest you call your vet or kennel BEFORE you take you dog in. Hopefully they will be honest with you and tell you whether or not that are seeing it in their place.

RMD

On a related note, there have been some news stories about a Parvo Virus outbreak in the northern lower peninsula of MI.

I do the vaccine for it or whatever it’s called every time I’m at the vet just in case I have to kennel her for a flight. I’d recommend keeping this current with your annual shots. But if that doesn’t take care of this, wow, thanks for the heads up. No trips planned for now.

quote:

Originally posted by YooperSigs:
On a related note, there have been some news stories about a Parvo Virus outbreak in the northern lower peninsula of MI.

This was a big story last week when it was claimed by the click bait media that it was some mystery illness that was not Parvovirus.
Turns out, it was.
The first clue should have been that the only dogs that got it had not been vaccinated for Parvovirus.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/m...ab-finds-parvovirus/

quote:

Originally posted by rduckwor:
Its all over the South. My two dogs were boarded at the vet I use the third week in July (Montgomery, AL). Both got it. One died and the other is still recovering. Its viral and probably is NOT canine influenza. But something else and is not the usual Kennel Cough.

I suggest you call your vet or kennel BEFORE you take you dog in. Hopefully they will be honest with you and tell you whether or not that are seeing it in their place.

RMD

rduckwor,

First, I'm sorry for your loss, that is terrible. I'm sure the vet is horrified by this as well.

Secondly, did they send off to test for influenza? There is a send-out test available, and without the test it is virtually impossible to tell what it was, since dogs respond so variably to it.

Lastly, your advice is great to just ask the vet before boarding. Most will tell you if they've had anything go through lately. We vaccinate for everything that we see regionally as a rule, but of all the kennel cough complexes there are precious few with a vaccine.

The bottom line, don't just get the minimum number of required vaccines.
Just from a financial standpoint, the vaccine is much less than the disease.
From a health standpoint, the risk is no contest either.

quote:

Originally posted by 220-9er:
The bottom line, don't just get the minimum number of required vaccines.
Just from a financial standpoint, the vaccine is much less than the disease.
From a health standpoint, the risk is no contest either.

While this can make sense, do watch your pet after vaccination and see how it handles it.

Last time our GSD got vaccinated it went through a month of whimpering and crying in pain. It was really hard to watch. The vet said this happens sometimes and to give the dog Benedryl, which didn't help at all. Taking the dog back to the vet, we talked about adverse reactions and frequently of vaccinations and vet ended up saying we should limit vaccines going forward.

Bordetella shots are fairly cheap for me, like $35 for the year. I get them since I take my dogs to groomers.