Dog owners who plan on traveling this holiday season without their pets may want to reconsider leaving their dogs at a boarding facility or day care, veterinarians say.
There are reports in several states, including Colorado, Oregon, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Illinois and Massachusetts, that canines are falling ill to a mysterious and unusual respiratory disease that does not appear to respond to antibiotics. In some cases, the dogs have developed pneumonia and some have even died as a result.
The Washington Post spoke with veterinarians and veterinary medicine experts about what people should know about the disease and the precautions that dog owners should take as they make holiday travel plans.
Veterinarians say dog owners should not panic, and there is still much to be learned about the illness. There are simple precautions dog owners can take to avoid any canine respiratory illness.
Experts suggest avoiding situations where your dog is interacting with groups of dogs — advice that could interfere with many people’s pet-care plans during holiday travel.
“If you don’t have to board your dog, use a pet sitter,” said Amanda Cavanagh, a veterinarian specializing in emergency and critical care at Colorado State University. “If you don’t have to go to a dog park or doggy day care, try to avoid it. Don’t exercise with other dogs who are not from the same house.”
Experts don’t know how contagious the disease is or how it’s spread. But the assumption is that, like with other respiratory diseases, it spreads as dogs inhale aerosolized particles from infected dogs, said Kurt Williams, the director of the Oregon Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory at Oregon State University.
The evidence, Williams added, shows that it’s more common in dogs in situations where they are housed with other dogs, such as in shelters or boarding facilities.
“Most of the dogs coming in with this cough have been in doggy day care or the dog park, so we think it’s passed among dogs as they congregate in groups,” Cavanagh said.
Experts also say that the disease appears to be specific to dogs and does not spread to humans or other animals.
If you are worried about your dog, consult your local veterinarian, especially if your dog has a cough. If your dog is showing signs of illness, don’t send the pup to a kennel or doggy day care where it will be around other dogs.
The healthier your dog, the more it will be able to fight off this disease, said Rena Carlson, the president of the American Veterinary Medical Association, a not-for-profit organization that represents more than 100,000 veterinarians.
“Make sure your dog is healthy as can be,” said Carlson, whose veterinary practice is in Idaho. “That includes visits to the vet, vaccines, nutrition and exercise, all those components of being a healthy dog.”
Cavanagh recommends full vaccination for all dogs, including the four common vaccines for distemper virus, adenovirus, parainfluenza and parvovirus, and two additional shots she says are important this year: the bordetella and canine influenza vaccines.
If you are planning to board your dog or allow it to socialize with other dogs, ensure your pet is vaccinated at least two weeks before arriving at the kennel.
“Getting those vaccines now is probably not enough time for dogs to be boarded right now and be safe for Thanksgiving, but it could be enough time for Christmas,” Cavanagh said.
Experts don’t know whether it is a virus or a bacteria causing the respiratory disease.
“There’s a lot of chatter that there’s a virus, but we’ve tested it here in Oregon, and we’re not finding evidence of either well-known viruses that can be associated with respiratory disease in dogs or novel viruses,” Williams said.
Researchers in New Hampshire have found evidence of an atypical bacteria in sick dogs around New England, but the team is unsure whether that’s the case for other dogs across the United States, said David Needle, a senior veterinary pathologist and the pathology section chief at the New Hampshire Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory.
Dogs with this illness may start off with a dry cough or nasal and ocular discharge, said Cavanagh. But it can progress to pneumonia, where dogs develop a wet cough.
“They’ll get lethargic and weak and stop eating, and many times have a fever as well,” Cavanagh said.
The Oregon Department of Agriculture, which has received more than 200 reports from Oregon veterinarians since mid-August about the illness, said that cases appear to fall within three general clinical syndromes:
Most animals will get supportive care as needed. Carlson said the most important thing is to provide your dog with ample fluids and nutrition.
And if your dog has pneumonia, it may need to be given supplemental oxygen. Some dogs are put on anti-inflammatories to minimize inflammation caused by the disease. “Consult your veterinarian to decide how severe it is,” she said.
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