Kennel Cough In Dogs

Kennel cough in dogs is also called Canine Cough, Bordetellosis and Infectious Tracheobronchitis.

Kennel Cough in dogs will stimulate a coarse, dry, hacking cough about three to seven days after the dog is initially infected. It sounds as if the dog needs to "clear it's throat" and the cough will be triggered by any extra activity or exercise. Many dogs that acquire Kennel Cough will cough every few minutes, all day long. Their general state of health and alertness will be unaffected, they usually have no rise in temperature, and do not lose their appetite. The signs of Canine Cough usually will last from 7 to 21 days and can be very annoying for the dog and the dog's owners. Life threatening cases of Kennel Cough are extremely rare and a vast majority of dogs that acquire the infection will recover on their own with no medication. Cough suppressants and occasionally antibiotics are the usual treatment selections.

WHAT IS KENNEL COUGH?
Actually, clinical cases of Kennel Cough are usually caused by several infectious agents working together to damage and irritate the lining of the dog's trachea and upper bronchii. The damage to the tracheal lining is fairly superficial, but exposes nerve endings that become irritated simply by the passage of air over the damaged tracheal lining. Once the organisms are eliminated the tracheal lining will heal rapidly. The most common organisms associated with Canine Cough are the bacteria called Bordetella bronchiseptica and two viruses called Parainfluenza virus and Adenovirus and even an organism called Mycoplasma.

HOW IS IT TRANSMITTED?
The causative organisms can be present in the expired air of an infected dog, much the same way that human "colds" are transmitted. The airborne organisms will be carried in the air in microscopically tiny water vapor or dust particles. The airborne organisms, if inhaled by a susceptible dog, can attach to the lining of the trachea and upper airway passages, find a warm, moist surface on which to reside and replicate, and eventually damage the cells they infect.

The reason this disease seems so common, and is even named "Kennel" cough, is that wherever there are numbers of dogs confined together in an enclosed environment such as a kennel, animal shelter, or indoor dog show, the disease is much more likely to be spread. The same is true with the "colds" spread from human to human... they are much more likely to occur in a populated, enclosed environment such as an airplane, elevator, or office. All it takes for contagion to occur is a single source (infected dog), an enclosed environment, and susceptible individuals in close proximity to the source of the infection. Infected dogs can spread the organisms for days to weeks even after seeming to have fully recovered!

NOTE: Even in the most hygienic, well ventilated, spacious kennels the possibility of a dog acquiring Kennel Cough exists. Kennel Cough can be acquired from your neighbor's dog, from a Champion show dog at a dog show, from the animal hospital where your dog just came in for treatment of a cut paw... Try not to blame the kennel operator if your dog develops Kennel Cough shortly after that weekend stay at the kennel! There may have been an infected dog, unknown to anyone, that acted as a source for other dogs in the kennel.

Many dogs will have protective levels of immunity to Kennel Cough via minor exposures to the infective organisms and simply will not acquire the disease even if exposed. Other dogs that may never have had immunizing subtle exposures will be susceptible to the Bordetella bacteria and associated viruses and develop the signs of coughing and hacking.

HOW IS IT TREATED?
Many dogs that contract Kennel Cough will display only minor signs of coughing that may last seven to ten days and will not require any medication at all. The majority of dogs with the disease continue to eat, sleep, play and act normally... except for that annoying, dry, non-productive coughing that seems so persistent. It is always a good idea, though, to have any dog examined if coughing is noticed because some very serious respiratory diseases such as Blastomycosis, Valley Fever, Heartworms and even cardiac disease might display similar sounding coughing. Your veterinarian, through a careful physical exam and questioning regarding the dog's recent environment, will be able to establish if the dog's respiratory signs are from kennel Cough or some other respiratory insult.

Treatment is generally limited to symptomatic relief of the coughing with non-prescription, and occasionally prescription, cough suppressants. If the dog is running a fever or there seems to be a persistent and severe cough, antibiotics are occasionally utilized to assist the dog in recovering from Kennel Cough. It can happen that secondary bacterial invaders will complicate a case of Kennel Cough and prolong the recovery and severely affect the upper airway. Therefore the use of antibiotics is determined on an individual basis.

HOW IS IT PREVENTED?
Many dogs, exposed to all sorts and numbers of other dogs, will never experience the effects of Canine Cough. Some dog owners, though, prefer to take advantage of the current vaccines available that are quite effective in preventing the disease. Usually these dog owners will have to board, show, field trial, or otherwise expose their dog to populations of other canines. Since the chances of exposure and subsequent infection rise as the dog comes in close proximity with other dogs, the decision to vaccinate or not to vaccinate varies with each individual circumstance. Generally, if your dog is not boarded or going to field trials or dog shows, you may not have a high level of need for vaccinating your dog against Kennel Cough. If your dog happens to acquire Kennel Cough, it will then have some immunity to subsequent exposures. The length of time these natural exposures and the vaccinations will produce protective immunity will vary greatly. How often to vaccinate seems to have a subjective and elusive answer.

Be aware that vaccinating with just the commercial Kennel Cough vaccine alone (contains only the Bordetella agent) may not be fully protective because of the other infectious agents that are involved with producing the disease. Some of the other agents such as Parainfluenza and Adenovirus are part of the routine vaccinations generally given yearly to dogs. The intra-nasal Bordetella vaccine may produce immunity slightly faster than the injectible vaccine.

NOTE: Any vaccine takes days to weeks to stimulate the dog's protective immunity to the disease. Vaccinating a dog the day it is exposed to disease may not be protective. If you plan to board your dog, or protect it from exposure, remember to vaccinate a few weeks prior to potential exposure to allow full protective immunity to build up.

Comments

[Lisa Fuente]

I have 2 shi-tzu dogs. 1 of them has developed a dry hacking cough followed by a gag sound. Whe is n never boarded although I do have them groomed 1x per month.

I took her to the doctor last monday and we felt she had kennel cough. She was vaccinated for this but it has been almost a year since her last vaccination. Can she aquire kennel cough even though she has been vaccinated.

Also, my other dog is always groomed at the same place and is not showing any symptoms, as of yet. She was however, vaccinated less tham 6 weeks ago for kennel cough. They are on different vaccinations scheules due to their birthdays, should I have them vaccinated for this at the same time?

Thanks.

[Samantha Ferguson]

I took my labrador into the vet this morning after worrying about a hacking cough he has started after being in the kennels for the weekend, he is on a course of anti-biotics that we have started today. I am just wondering if its normal for him to be a bit less active and lethargic i take it they would feel the same as we would if we are not well too? But just wanted another apinion. Any help would be appreciated. Thanx

[Rheanna]

My puppy i SAVED from the pound here in new mexico has a really bad cough. I wonder if there was any home remades anyone knows about for this kennel cough.....please help this poor puppy has had a bad life up until we got her and it has really turned out to be something AWESOME with her around if any one knows anything please let me know.....thanks

[marianne hill]

Good morning,

On your websites information is to be found about kennel cough, comparable to a Bb infection in cats and a Bordetella bronchiseptica (medical name for kennel cough) in pigs.

However, pertinent information about the transfer of this bacterium onto humans, also through way of vaccine matter material, is not be found anywhere on your websites. Medical diagnoses of human Bordetella bronchiseptica infection have increased tremendously in the last years and just recently the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Fl diagnosed a "Bordetella bronchiseptica" infection through way of vaccine material administered to her dog (see below). The AVMA, the USDA and the CDC are all involved in the VSP (Veterinarian Safety Precautions) Compendium and in their latest one (2008) they list Bordetella bronchiseptica again as a zoonotic (able to transfer itself from animal to human) matter to watch out for. However, the American public and pet owners are not forewarned about this and since American veterinarians will be administering and certain internet shops with veterinarians on staff will sell these vaccines directly to pet owners, when human diagnoses are made through vaccine matter material infection, they both will be ones since the USDA and the CDC refuse to take their responsibility towards the general public in this matter, who will legally be held responsible for not, in knowledge, warning pet owners about the risks of vaccine matter transfer to their own health. In Europe, the warnings are carried on the labels because Bordetella bronchiseptica is listed world-wide on Material Data Safety Sheets as zoonotic in nature even though many websites there also will not warn people visiting them about the dangers for humans, and only about the necessity for vaccine administering in either dogs, cats and pigs.

I just wanted to bring this to your attention.

Sincerely,

H. Hill
October 2007

BORDETELLA BRONCHISEPTICA PNEUMONIA FOLLOWING EXPOSURE TO RECENTLY VACCINATED CANINES

Mayo Clinic Jacksonville, Jacksonville, Fl

CASE PRESENTATION: A 61-year-old female status post renal-pancreas transplant presented her self with a chronic cough and dyspnea.... She was evaluated by her local physician, diagnosed with pneumonia, and treated with macrolide therapy. The symptoms persisted;..... the patient sought a second opinion at Mayo Clinic Jacksonville. .......The bacterial cultures grew 3+ Bordetella bronchiseptica..... .. The veterinarian was contacted identifying the vaccination as a modified, live intranasal Bordetella bronchiseptica vaccine....she contracted Bordetella bronchiseptica shortly after her pet dogs received a modified live intranasal Bordetella vaccine. DISCUSSION: Zoonotic organisms are recognized as potential causes of disease in humans. It is well known that vaccines which contain live attenuated organisms should not be given to immunocompromised patients. Shedding, as with the former oral polio vaccine, likely occurs with other similar vaccination modalities be they in humans or other animals........... Our report.........illustrates the dangers of transmission involving live vaccines, particularly in the immunocompromised patient population.

Publication Status: published by the American College of Chest Physicians

Clin Infect Dis. 2008 Mar 15;46(6):905-8.

Persistent Bordetella bronchiseptica pneumonia in an immunocompetent infant and genetic comparison of clinical isolates with kennel cough vaccine strains.

Department of Pediatrics, Division of Infectious Diseases, Tulane University Health Sciences Center, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

Case report: An infant who experienced recurrent episodes of respiratory failure received a diagnosis of pertussis on the basis of immunofluorescence testing, but culture revealed macrolide-resistant Bordetella bronchiseptica. Genetic analysis demonstrated that the child was not infected with a kennel cough vaccine strain, although the family's dog had recently been vaccinated.

Infant- pneunomia

Immunocompetence

Publication Status: ppublish - PMID: 18260750 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Clin Microbio Infect. Mar 2000

Bronchitis caused by Bordetella bronchiseptica in an elderly woman

University of Athens School of Medicine, Alexandar Hospital, Athens, Greece

Case Report: Aged 80 and over - Bordetella infections/drug therapy/microbiology - Bordetella bronchiseptica isolation//isolation & purification - Bronchitis/drug therapy/microbiology

Aged - Female

Fatal Outcome

Publication Status: ppublish - PMID: 11168091 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Isr Med Assoc J 2000 May;2(5):402-3

Fatal pneumonia due to Bordetella bronchiseptica

Department of Internal Medicine B, Laniado Hospital, Netanya, Israel

Case Report: Aged - Bordetella Infections/diagnosis - Bordetella bronchiseptica - Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung Surgery- Opportunistic Infections/diagnosis - Pneunomectomy- pneumonia bacterial/diagnosis

Aged- Male

Fatal Outcome

Publication Status: ppublish - PMID: 10892400 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

J Clin Microbiol. 2001 Nov;

Infected branchial cleft cyst due to Bordetella bronchiseptica in an immunocompetent patient.

Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-4283, USA.

Case report: A healthy 23-year-old man with fever and a tender mass in his right anterior neck was found to have a branchial cleft cyst infected with Bordetella bronchiseptica. Initial testing suggested a Brucella species, but further laboratory testing identified the organism definitely.

Bordetella Infections/*microbiology - Bordetella bronchiseptica/*isolation & purification - Branchioma/*microbiology - Head and Neck Neoplasms/*microbiology

Adult - Male

Immunocompetence

Publication Status: ppublish - PMID: 11682564 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Arch Bronconeumol. 2006 May;42(5):255-6.

Necrotizing pneumonia due to Bordetella bronchiseptica in an immunocompetent woman

Case Report - Letter: Aged - Bordetella Infections - Bordetella bronchiseptica - Necrosis - Pneumonia, Bacterial/microbiology/pathology

Aged - Female

Immunocompetence

Publication Status: ppublish - PMID: 16740243 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE

Addison Biological Laboratory Inc, Missouri - Neonatal Bordetellosis as a predisposing factor in swine respiratory disease

Report: page 12 of the report, sub 25:

".....it could be potentially a problem if administration (of Bordetella bronchiseptica vaccine) is concurrently given with other vaccines and intranasal products..."

[GRS]

My mom has a female that she has vaccinated for Kennel cough before starting agility classes. She was about 5 at the time of the shot. Shortly after she started having minor seizures. Now they have turned into gran mal seizures and the vet says she most likely has a tumor in her brain. Is there a posibility that the Boretella shot caused this? Thank you. Concerned daughter.

[angela]

Hi, I was just wondering if you know anything about a human contracting Bordetella from a puppy? Well my husband went through a stem cell transplant and has contracted a bacterial form of it. With many series of antibiotics the hacking cough is gone but he is still positive for the bacteria in his throat and nasal swab. He got this in April 2008 and is still positive for it now. Do you think it could reactivate or become more serious. Do you also know of any doctors that are very experience in this.