The sound of a honking goose!
Sometimes, when you are in the consulting room, you can almost diagnose the next patient before you’ve even seen them because you can hear what sounds like a honking goose and, actually, it’s a dog with kennel cough.
Classic kennel cough syndrome is caused by several different types of microbes - viruses and bacteria -and is easily passed between dogs. Its name is a bit of a red herring as not only can it be caught between dogs in kennels but is more frequently caught in doggy meetings in the park.
The infection causes an inflamed throat and windpipe and a distinctive cough which sounds like something is caught in the throat. Occasionally, there is sneezing, runny eyes and a runny nose but most adult dogs will clear the infection within about three weeks and be perfectly fine.
Some dogs do need a course of antibiotics which will act against a kennel cough caused by a bacterium, or will clear any secondary infections if the initial one was viral. However, there are some groups of dogs - young puppies, elderly dogs and any with lung or heart disease - where kennel cough infection can become much more serious.
So how can it be prevented? Kennel cough vaccine has been developed against the most common cause of the syndrome, Bordetella bronchiseptica bacterium. This is not one of the 'core' vaccines that are normally given to dogs as puppies or in the annual boosters.
Kennel cough is not a deadly disease such as the ones included in regular vaccinations that you may have heard of such as Distemper and Parvovirus. Nor does the kennel cough vaccine provide guaranteed full protection against the disease as there are several microbes that can cause it, but it does make better some of the symptoms.
If your dog regularly socialises with groups of other dogs say at training class, meets a lot of dogs in the park or is going into kennels or home-boarding for the holidays then vaccination is definitely recommended. This is where the fun begins. To be most effective, the vaccine is administered in the nostril. The majority of dogs accept this although dislike the experience, for others food and bribery are used to make the whole thing a much more pleasant experience.
The kennel cough vaccine lasts for a year and may not be essential every year. Initial protection starts 72 hours after dosing but can take three weeks for its full protection. Your dog needs to be healthy before having the vaccine and puppies should be at least three weeks old before they can have it.
So, if you have a social dog or are feeling the need for some summer sun, don’t forget the vaccinations too.
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