Puppy with Kennel Cough

We took care of a friend's dog this weekend, and also adopted a dog from the shelter. We took the new puppy to the vet immediately and they said she was in great health. She was up to date on all her shots.

We took the new puppy and the puppy we were puppy sitting to a friend's house. All the dogs played hard and got a lot of exercise. The following morning, the newly adopted puppy is displaying signs of kennel cough. We called the vet and started her on antibiotics.

I am concerned about the puppy we were keeping. He is up to date on his shots, but he has a brother and sister. I don't want him to go back and contaminate the whole family.

The puppy we were puppy sitting is also scheduled to be neutered this week. Is there anything we should do at this point?

~~Thank you, Donna

Expert Answer

Hi Donna,

Vaccination routines have changed a bit in the last ten years. Some vets routinely give the vaccine for kennel cough, while others do not. Unless you are able to contact your friends and confirm their pup received the vaccination for kennel cough, the safest thing is to keep the pups in two different areas of the house. Be sure to wash your hands before going from one pup to the other to reduce the chance of transmitting the illness.

Did you let the vet treating your adopted puppy know you were also boarding another? If so, the vet should have made a recommendation as to what you should do. If you forgot to mention it to him, call and ask his/her professional opinion. Also let your friends know about the situation, so they know the symptoms to watch for when they take their puppy home. If your friends' puppy displays symptoms of kennel cough before they return, you may want to offer to keep the pup at your house while it undergoes treatment, to aviod exposure to its siblings.

As for neutering the boarding puppy this week, your friends should rely on their vet's advice. Many vets will delay surgery/anesthesia if a dog displays signs of illness.

On the bright side, it sounds like you caught your puppy's kennel cough quite early, so it should recover very quickly. Good job!

Thanks for your question,

Kelly

Is It Kennel Cough?

Visitor Question

My sister's dogs have been vomiting and have what sounds like a choking cough. This illness has traveled from one dog to the next.

Now my son has the same problems with his dogs. It seems like they have something in their throats.

~~ Jadelynn

Expert Reply

Hi Jadelynn,

It definitely sounds like there is something contagious going on. I'm assuming there has been some contact between your sister and son, and possibly their dogs too? Kennel cough is a very contagious respiratory illness that is easily passed by hand-to-hand contact, but I need more information in order to make an educated guess whether this might be the problem.

Does the vomit look like food, or mainly phlegm? Kennel cough can progress into pneumonia if left untreated.

Only a veterinarian can diagnose the exact cause of this outbreak and I highly urge you to persuade your sister and son to both have their pets examined as soon as possible.

Please let us know what you find out. ~~Kelly