My dog has kennel cough.

Forums: Dogs, Kennel Cough, Pets, Veterinary Medicine, Veterinary
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My dog, Diamond, has a nasty case of kennel cough. I don't know if any of you have seen this in action but it is wicked awful. We saw the vet today and he was put on antibiotics and a cough suppressant.

He was boarded January 14 - 20 but had no symptoms until Friday the 27th.

Since that time we have gone to the dog park a time or two. One day one of the regulars reported that she had left one of her dogs at home because it had a nasty cough.

So I don't know where Diamond might have contracted this. It seems that dogs can be asymptomatic for a spell before showing signs of illness. And, yes, he'd been vaccinated but apparently the vaccine doesn't protect against all strains.

Should I warn the kennel and Diamond's dog park pals? If he wasn't showing symptoms could he have been contagious?

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Type: Question • Score: 12 • Views: 13,093 • Replies: 26

@boomerang,

Kennel cough is very contagious but not dangerous. You might want to mention his condition to any facility he's been in recently. They can do what they want with the information.

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@rosborne979,

That sounds like a good plan. Better safe than guilty of spreading infection.

I'm going to give the kennel a call and try to get by the dog park to let people know.

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@boomerang,

I dunno re the contagion period.. I guess I'd tell whomever.
Pacco had it; I took him to the vet the day after I got him from the humane society, and they put him on an antibiotic and it went away fast, though natch you finish the course of pills. I have a faint memory that the humane society told me he had it, but not sure all this time later.

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@boomerang,

anybody in the house had a cough first. The bronchial virus thats responsible for kennel cough is one of the few tthat is transmittable to humans and vice versa.
As rosbprne said, its highly treatable but remember the sound(kinda dry and gross) well, dont go up to your dog and get face to face till its all gone and the PILLS ARE ALL USED!!

1 Reply

@farmerman,

Oh gawd. The sound! Crazy making. The poor dear.

Diamond is on quarantine. He's terribly unhappy about it. Luckily (?) the cough suppressant knocked him out cold for most of the day. The cough gets really bad when he's running around or excited so knocked out is good.

I'd heard of kennel cough but had absolutely no idea of how awful it is.

I called the kennel and left a message telling them about his diagnosis.

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@boomerang,

Poor Diamond! Hope he's feeling better soon.

1 Reply

@boomerang,

one more teeeeny point.

If hes getting a really strong med , there is a chance that the doggy will get diahrrea. Be careful where you let him stay, (if hes a house doggie).
We had 3 dogs and atill hqve 2, when one gets a kennel cough, they all get it and Stasha (our very intelligent nd usually fastidious border Collie) had the trots and was totally embarassed at her plight. We kept her and the others in their outdoors kennels till it ran its course, usually less than a week for all of em to be symptom free.

Thats good about not exercising her a lot while she recoups cause it only makes the bronchial strangulation sound even worse. Give it a week and sheel be waaay better.

1 Reply

@rosborne979,

rosborne979 wrote:

Kennel cough is very contagious but not dangerous. You might want to mention his condition to any facility he's been in recently. They can do what they want with the information.

I second this. Just so any other facilities know about the incident.

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@farmerman,

We have a system of pet doors allowing the access to the back yard at all times so that shouldn't be a problem for us.

Good to know, though.

I'm looking forward to way better.

Diamond hasn't been sick a day in his life and he's almost 5. He's stupid healthy and energetic. All this sitting around is making him nutty.

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That’s true, very common for them to get kennel cough. Mine got it last year just from taking them to the Vet. It’s very contagious but treatable with antibiotics.

1 Reply

@jcboy,

The minute I walked into the vet they ushered me into an exam room -- no waiting in the lobby for us!

When we left and I was waiting to pay the vet-tech came out and asked is I would let her wait outside with my dog. I just put him into the car instead.

It was clear they did not want my dog hanging out at the office. That's when I started thinking I should let people know....

1 Reply

@boomerang,

I told my Vet my dogs had to have gotten it when I took them in his office because they hadn’t been around any other dogs, he said that was highly possible and he gave me the antibiotics for free.

When we go out of town like when we went to St. George Island I had a friend take care of the dogs here at the house rather then taking them to a kennel, a kennel is a bad place, you just don’t know what the other dogs might have.

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We also have a dog sitter staying at the house when we're gone. It's just so
much better for the animals and I know Lilly is taken care of.

Our old dog Max was once in a kennel; it was a good one and the animals
are well taken care of, he was traumatized nonetheless, not physically,
but emotionally. I think he was left alone for too long, despite me paying
extra for TLC time. I still feel guilty about that, even though Max is already
in doggie heaven. Smile

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Our experience with a dog sitter was exactly the opposite. What a fiasco! I still can't believe the horror stories from it. Our dog was so freaked out.

By contrast, our kennel is a wonderful place. It is several fenced in acres nestled in the foothills of the Cascade mountains. The dogs (the social, agreeable ones) are allowed to run around and play with each other for big chunks of the day, the they have siesta, then they play some more. It's heated and air conditioned with video access so you can check up on your pet at random times. Really, it's a dog spa, or camp. My dog has fun there.

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Some articles from vetinfo.com:

http://www.vetinfo.com/dencyclopedia/dekcough.html

http://www.vetinfo.com/diagnosing-kennel-cough-dogs.html

http://www.vetinfo.com/kennel-cough-vaccine.html

http://www.vetinfo.com/kennel-cough-vaccine-effectiveness.html

http://www.vetinfo.com/how-long-does-kennel-cough-last.html

and finally:

http://www.vetinfo.com/canine-kennel-cough.html

Quote:

6 Canine Kennel Cough Recovery Tips

Canine kennel cough happens when dogs are exposed to germs from other dogs in enclosed spaces. A vaccination is available, but if your dog happens to catch this illness, follow the tips below to help your dog recover:

Make sure you have proper ventilation in your home. Provide your dog with plenty of clean, fresh air. Exposure to smoke from fireplaces or cigarettes and fumes from household chemicals will make recovery tougher.
Cough syrup is an acceptable way to treat canine kennel cough. Vets recommend Robitussin, or similar cough suppressants, given according to the dog's size.
Soothe your dog's air passages and throat by adding moisture and humidity into the air. You can use a humidifier, vaporizer or take your dog into the bathroom when you are showering to expose him to the steam.
Help drain your dog's airways by taking him on a slow and relaxing walk. The movement will help loosen up his air passages. Don't overwork him as this can increase his coughing.
Canine kennel cough is highly contagious so keep your dog away from her furry friends until the infection subsides. Remember: Some facilities require proof of immunization for canine kennel cough before your dog is allowed to lodge here.

A typical recovery period from kennel cough is 7 to 10 days, during which time you should provide as much comfort as possible for your pet. If your dog does not respond to such treatments and develops a fever or loss of appetite, take him to the vet. In some cases kennel cough will lead to pneumonia.

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@sozobe,

sozobe wrote:

Poor Diamond! Hope he's feeling better soon.

What she said!

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I hope that clears up soon.

Our vet makes us give Pistol and Biscuit a kennel cough vaccine before they will board them. They get it yearly. It's not expensive but so far we have escaped it...hopefully we won't get it. It sounds terrible. Poor Diamond!

1 Reply

@mismi,

Diamond had a vaccine. The way the vet explained it to me is that it's like a flu shot -- it won't protect against all the strains. Our kennel requires proof of all vaccinations before they'll board your dog -- one of the reasons that I think it might have come from the dog park instead of the kennel.

Thanks everyone, for all the well wishes. Diamond already seems to be feeling better. Spending the night knocked out of cough medicine seems to have done him a lot of good!

2 Replies

@boomerang,

I've never experienced - only have heard about it. I thought there was a vaccine for it? I remember my vet asking specifically if our dog would ever be in kennel, if so he would need a vaccine.

0 Replies

My dog has kennel cough.

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