{"id":30521,"date":"2023-11-23T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-11-23T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/dogs-in-colorado-are-getting-sick-with-respiratory-viruses-heres-how-to-keep-them-healthy\/"},"modified":"2023-11-23T15:00:00","modified_gmt":"2023-11-23T15:00:00","slug":"dogs-in-colorado-are-getting-sick-with-respiratory-viruses-heres-how-to-keep-them-healthy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/dogs-in-colorado-are-getting-sick-with-respiratory-viruses-heres-how-to-keep-them-healthy\/","title":{"rendered":"Dogs in Colorado are getting sick with respiratory viruses. Here\u2019s how to keep them healthy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"An
An unnamed dog, seen here on Dec. 8, 2020, is up for a breed evaluation at the Denver Animal Shelter. (Kevin J. Beaty\/Denverite)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The season of respiratory illnesses is upon us. But coughs, colds, and fevers are not just affecting humans; they\u2019re hitting our canine pals, too. And this year, contagious respiratory illnesses have been unusually prevalent in dogs.<\/p>\n

Veterinarians in Colorado, as well as in several other states, have noticed more sick dogs coming into their offices with coughs than in past years. While it\u2019s not uncommon for dogs to get respiratory illnesses \u2013 often called \u201ckennel cough\u201d \u2013 this time of year, some dogs are showing up in exam rooms with severe coughs or pneumonia.<\/p>\n

Typically, infectious disease like a cough lasts for seven to 10 days and resolves \u201cpretty quickly,\u201d said Dr. Maggie Baldwin, Colorado state veterinarian. \u201cWhat appears to be different [this year] is that these are presenting with prolonged coughs that are lasting weeks to months and they have minimal response to treatment. In some cases, the dogs have progressed to contracting pneumonia and requiring hospitalization.\u201d<\/p>\n

Depending on whether the dog is infected with a virus or a bacteria, treatment could include antibiotics or other types of supportive care. To define which course of action to take, veterinarians will use a PCR test, much like we use to test for COVID-19, which looks for a variety of known illnesses that affect dogs \u2013 including SARS-CoV-2.<\/p>\n

What is tricky with PCR tests is that they are most effective when used within 72 hours of the first onset of symptoms, so they\u2019re less accurate the longer a dog has been sick.<\/p>\n

Veterinarians from all over Colorado have contacted the state\u2019s Department of Agriculture with reports of respiratory illnesses in the dogs they\u2019re seeing, said Baldwin. The state is working with both local and federal researchers to figure out whether it\u2019s a single virus or multiple ones that are affecting dogs this year.<\/p>\n

Dr. Amanda Cavanagh, with Colorado State University, said her office doesn\u2019t yet know what\u2019s causing the increase in respiratory illnesses, but they\u2019re partnering with the state to investigate.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe term \u2018mystery illness\u2019 [has been] tossed out there, but I don\u2019t know that that\u2019s what we\u2019re dealing with,\u201d Cavanagh said.<\/p>\n

Baldwin agreed.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere has not been any conclusive testing to indicate what might be causing this increased prevalence in disease,\u201d she said. \u201cThat doesn\u2019t necessarily mean that what we\u2019re seeing is a new or novel virus. [There are] a lot of different causes for canine respiratory infections, but it just means that we might not be testing enough or we might not be testing at the right time in the course of disease to pick that up.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the cases where dogs developed pneumonia, that more severe illness is caused by a secondary bacterial infection and not indicative of the initial cause of the illness, Baldwin continued.<\/p>\n

\u201cTypically for viral respiratory infections,\u201d said Baldwin, \u201cYou really have to test early in the course of disease in order to actually catch the virus itself on diagnostic testing. \u201d<\/p>\n

Dr. Silene St. Bernard, the regional medical director of VCA Animal Hospitals, said the one thing that people shouldn\u2019t do is panic.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we can\u2019t pinpoint something, people get concerned. But there\u2019s nothing in terms of numbers of pets or severity at this point,\u201d she said. \u201cWe\u2019re certainly addressing it, looking for reasons and doing the research. We need to try and identify if there\u2019s something going on that we need to be more aggressive in managing.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the meantime, here are some tips for keeping your dog healthy.<\/p>\n

Watch out for these symptoms<\/div>\n

Symptoms of respiratory illness in dogs include coughing, sneezing, nasal or eye discharge, and lethargy. Even if your dog has one symptom and not the others, call your veterinarian.<\/p>\n

Get your dog vaccinated<\/div>\n

One of the best ways to keep your dog healthy is to make sure they\u2019re up-to-date on all of their vaccines. That includes the normal group of shots \u2013 such as distemper, adenovirus, and parainfluenza \u2013 your veterinarian administers every one or three years, and two vaccines that aren\u2019t always part of routine vaccinations: intranasal bordetella and canine influenza.<\/p>\n

\u201cThose two vaccines \u2026 are sometimes optional vaccines and recommended if your dog is going into grooming or is going into boarding,\u201d said Cavanagh. \u201cBut at this point, I recommend that every dog get those two vaccines.\u201d<\/p>\n

Once your dog is fully vaccinated, it\u2019s important to wait at least two weeks before allowing them to interact with dogs they don\u2019t live with. This gives them time to develop full immunity.<\/p>\n

Keep your dog away from social spaces<\/div>\n

Respiratory viruses spread through nose and mouth contact with contagious dogs. Dog parks, groomers, boarding facilities, pet stores, and other social spaces are prime spots for viruses to spread. If you have the option, keep your dog from interacting with dogs outside your home.<\/p>\n

That includes brief greetings on the sidewalk.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I were out walking my dog and somebody said, \u2018Oh, can my dog come up and say hi to your dog?\u2019 At this point, I might say, \u2018no thanks,\u2019\u201d Cavanagh said. \u201cWe will go about our walk without making that close contact with other dogs just because most of these viruses and bacteria are shed through the nose and through the mouth and are passed that way dog to dog.\u201d<\/p>\n

If you have to board your dog or put it in day care, check to see whether the facility requires proof of vaccination against respiratory diseases like Bordetella and influenza.<\/p>\n

Another thing you can check is whether that facility does \u201ca good job with cleaning and disinfection,\u201d said St. Bernard. It\u2019s also important that they have \u201cyour contact information to reach out to you if there\u2019s an issue and that they know who your veterinarian is in case there\u2019s any kind of a problem.\u201d<\/p>\n

What to do if your dog is sick<\/div>\n

If your dog has developed a cough, eye or nasal discharge, or is acting lethargic, call your vet as soon as possible. A cough doesn\u2019t necessarily mean your dog has contracted a dangerous respiratory virus; it could be an indication of other underlying medical issues.<\/p>\n

\u201c[A] cough can be benign, but cough can also be really troublesome,\u201d said Cavanagh \u201cIt could be caused by a bacterial pneumonia that does need antibiotics \u2026 It can be caused by things that are similar to asthma in people.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some cases of pneumonia progress quickly, making dogs very sick within 24 to 36 hours, so dog owners need to act quickly.<\/p>\n

St. Bernard said your veterinarian will use a PCR test to determine what might be causing your dog\u2019s symptoms; This is the same nasal or throat swab that humans have become familiar with for COVID-19 testing. That PCR test will look for a variety of known respiratory illnesses in dogs, and depending on what comes back, your vet will choose a treatment plan.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe generally treat respiratory disease relatively similarly regardless of the cause: So the two different buckets are viruses and bacteria,\u201d said St. Bernard. \u201cIf we come up with a bacteria, then if they\u2019re really sick, we\u2019ll often use some antibiotics. If it\u2019s a virus, we won\u2019t [use antibiotics] because antibiotics don\u2019t work on viruses, so they get treated with supportive care.\u201d<\/p>\n

But if it is a respiratory illness, it\u2019s important to get your dog tested within 72 hours of it first displaying symptoms. That will help your vet diagnose exactly what\u2019s going on.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

An unnamed dog, seen here on Dec. 8, 2020, is up for a breed evaluation at the Denver Animal Shelter. (Kevin J. Beaty\/Denverite) The season of respiratory illnesses is upon us. But coughs, colds, and fevers are not just affecting humans; they\u2019re hitting our canine pals, too. And this year, contagious respiratory illnesses have been […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":30522,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[28],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-30521","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-headlines"],"acf":[],"author_name":"Website Administrator","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30521","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30521"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30521\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/30522"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30521"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30521"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30521"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=30521"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}