What is kennel cough?
Kennel Cough is more technically known as
Canine Infectious Tracheobronchitis. This term localizes the most common clinical sign, coughing, to the trachea (wind pipe) and bronchi (within the lungs). It may be caused by several viruses and bacteria. These include the adenovirus type-2 virus, the parainfluenza virus, and the bacterium Bordetella bronchiseptica (Bb). The infection spreads rapidly from dog to dog in close quarters, such as a boarding kennel. This is the origin of its name.
What are the signs, besides coughing?
They are quite variable. Other symptoms include discharge from the eyes and nose, swollen tonsils, wheezing, lack of appetite, and lethargy. Although coughing is usually mild, it may persist for several weeks.
What is the treatment?
There is no specific treatment for the viruses involved. No drug will kill them, so they must run their course, which may take 2-3 weeks. Antibiotics are useful against the bacteria involved, although some resistance to some antibiotics has occurred. Cough suppressants are used to break the self-perpetuating cycle of coughing that occurs.
How can I prevent this disease?
Most vaccination programs include a vaccine against the parainfluenza virus and Bb. These should be administered to puppies and boostered in adults.
How effective are these vaccines?
Immunity after natural infection with respiratory viruses, like parainfluenza or bacteria like Bordetella, is neither solid or long-lasting. A booster vaccine is good insurance against disease.
How are the Bordetella vaccines delivered?
Bordetella vaccination is performed either by injection or via the "intranasal" route. The latter means that the vaccine is dropped into the nostrils. This permits immunity to develop in the membranes of the nose and throat where the viruses and bacteria enter. This is like setting up a road block to stop infection as a means of protecting your dog.
Can my dog give my cat Bordetella?
Epidemiological evidence shows that the isolation of Bordetella bronchiseptica (Bb) from cats is frequently associated with the presence, in the same household, of dogs with recent respiratory tract disease. Bb infection in cats has been reported following outbreaks of kennel cough in dogs within the same households. In one such case the isolates of Bb from the cats and dogs were shown by molecular techniques to be identical. This suggests that Bb may be transmitted between dogs and cats.
The implication of this evidence is that cats that are in regular contact with dogs are at risk from Bb infection.
See the following link for additional information:
Infectious Bronchitis
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