Canine Tracheobronchitis Information
Canine Cough (also known as ‘kennel cough’) usually takes between 2 and 10 days to appear after exposure, so it’s possible for a dog to feel great while at camp and only develop mild symptoms once they’re back home.
Canine 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 its throat,” and the cough will be triggered by any extra activity or exercise. Many dogs that acquire Canine Cough will cough every few minutes, and sometimes 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 can last from 7 to 21 days and can be annoying for the dog and the dog’s owners. The 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.
Canine cough is usually caused by several infectious agents working together to damage and irritate the lining of the dog’s trachea and upper bronchii. 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 reason this condition seems so common, and is often referred to as “Kennel” cough, is that wherever there are numbers of dogs spending time together, such as at a dog boarding facility, a dog day care facility, an animal shelter, a dog show, or a dog park, the disease is much more likely to be spread. The same is true with “colds” spread from human to human, in that they are much more likely to occur in a populated and somewhat ‘enclosed’ environment, such as an airplane, an elevator, or an office. Infected dogs can spread the organisms for days to weeks even after seeming to have fully recovered!
A dog can contract Canine Cough in the same way that a child can contract a cough or a cold at school, at daycare, or at camp.
Even in the most hygienic, well ventilated, and spacious dog day care and boarding facilities, the possibility of a dog acquiring Canine Cough exists. Canine Cough can be acquired from your neighbour’s dog, from a Champion show dog at a dog show, from even a brief visit to the animal hospital, etc. The challenge for a dog day care or boarding facility is that a dog infected with Canine Cough may not exhibit symptoms for a week or more, or may never exhibit any symptoms at all. Therefore, the only measures which can be taken to prevent the condition is to request that dog owners have their dogs vaccinated for Canine Cough (Bordetella Vaccine), and to separate a dog showing symptoms – from the other dogs, when possible. Many dogs will have protective levels of immunity to Canine 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 Canine 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 another respiratory infection could 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 Canine Cough or some other respiratory condition. 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 Canine Cough. It can happen that secondary bacterial invaders will complicate a case of Canine 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?
The only preventative measure which can be taken is the Canine Cough Vaccine (Bordetella Vaccine). Be aware that vaccinating with just the commercial Canine Cough Vaccine alone (which 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 annually to dogs. The intra-nasal Bordetella vaccine may produce immunity slightly faster than the injectable vaccine.