By Heidi Clayton
Numerous clients have contacted me concerning the media reports on the “mysterious” respiratory disease allegedly sweeping the nation. My response is to pump the brakes on the panic. For a variety of reasons, I am not any more concerned about this year’s mystery virus than at any other time of the year.
To ease my clients’ worries, I am telling them that at this time I would not change my plans to go to dog shows. I would exercise the same caution I do at any other time of the year. I waited to comment on this until after the National Dog Show which I just attended to see if I knew or heard of one person whose dog became infected with the illness. To date, not one person has.
First of all, I feel that the media and social media have driven the outbreak concern, as opposed to dogs en masse being infected. There appears to be limited data on the true number of dogs infected. The media reports that I have seen have focused on a few specific dogs who suffered from what is called Canine Infectious Respiratory Disease Complex (CIRDC). This illness is also called “kennel cough”.
Every day across the nation, dogs coughing goes unreported. Dogs that have been to boarding facilities, dog parks, grooming salons, dog shows, or just smelled a stranger’s dog’s poop out on a walk. Unlike the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for humans, there is no real way to track the true numbers of how many dogs at any given time are infected with a CIRDC-like illness. I usually hear of a kennel cough breakout through the social media of those who have attended dog events across the nation. I find the latest reports of this mystery illness to be well within the normal disease rate and that this is more of a breakout of social media overhype.
If you are indeed worried about this “outbreak,” avoid places where groups of dogs meet like dog parks, daycare, or boarding facilities. On walks, do not allow your dogs to meet strange dogs nose-to-nose or sniff each other. Also, check that your dog has been vaccinated for Bordetella (kennel cough), influenza, and canine parainfluenza.
Keep in mind that your dog does not have to actually cough to be a carrier of kennel cough and can be asymptomatic. Obviously, if your dog coughs repeatedly, contact your vet for guidance. In that case, it is recommended to keep them quarantined for at least two weeks. And make sure if you are walking your dogs in wooded areas like EHT Nature Reserve or Lake Lenape Park, clean up after your dog’s poop!
If you have any questions, please feel free to email heidi@fouronthefloordogtraining.net.
Heidi Clayton started Four On the Floor Dog Training to provide positive, reward-based dog training in South Jersey. She breeds, trains and shows bull terriers under the SoraBully’s Bull Terriers kennel name. Email questions to heidi@fouronthefloordogtraining.net or learn more at https://fouronthefloordogtraining.net
