– By Dr. Patrick Martin —
What Is Kennel Cough?
If you’ve ever heard your dog make a loud, honking cough, you may have wondered if it’s something serious. In many cases, this could be Canine Infectious Respiratory Disease Complex (CIRDC), commonly known as “kennel cough”. This highly infectious canine illness can be easily transmitted from sick to healthy dogs that are in close contact, such as boarding facilities, dog parks, and daycare centers.
Causes & Symptoms of Kennel Cough
Kennel cough is very frequently seen in veterinary medicine, and veterinarians describe the term “kennel cough” as an umbrella term that encompasses different bacteria and viruses that cause dogs to have a distinctive honking cough. However, the symptoms of respiratory illnesses are not always the same between animals.
In addition to a strong cough with a “honking sound”, some dogs may experience:
- Lethargy
- Runny nose
- Vomiting
- Loss of appetite
- Pneumonia
- All animals with kennel cough have the potential to develop pneumonia, which can be a serious condition and potentially fatal.
Prevention and Treatment
Many of the bacteria and viruses that cause kennel cough are organisms we can vaccinate against with the Bordetella vaccine; however, vaccines do not provide 100% protection, and some of these organisms do not have commercially available vaccines. Oftentimes, Dogs often show little to no change in behavior throughout their treatment, which usually involves a course of antibiotics.
While the bacteria and viruses that cause this process are endemic (always present in the canine population to some extent), we tend to see a higher volume of cases around the holidays due to people traveling and boarding their dogs more frequently.
If your dog has any coughing symptoms after being in contact with unknown animals, it is best to book a veterinary appointment and get them examined by a professional veterinary team.
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