Would appreciate advice re Kennel Cough...

[MotherJack]

It's looking likely that I am to take on the foster care of an Am Bull from Thursday. She is 10 months old and would likely have been put to sleep otherwise.

I understand that she has kennel cough. I have a dog of my own and another that I am currently looking after. What do I need to do to safeguard them all? Do I book an appointment for all of them at the vets on Thursday night/Friday morning for shots?

Advice appreciated. Thanks

It depends on the age/heath of yours and the other dog.

In young healthy dogs kennel cough is usually a mild self-limiting illness and contracting it boosts a dogs future immunity. It has been positively rife this winter, my own dog has had it 3 times.

Like human flu vaccine, the kennel cough vaccine gives immunity against what are thought to be the common strain/s this year but will not protect against all of them. I am not sure how long the vaccine takes to work.

Personally I wouldn't ever vaccinate against kennel cough, it is a bit of a contentious vaccine and I wouldn't like to give it, however that is just my opinion as I am quite anti-vaccine for dogs.

Thanks WTWTW.

My old girl is 9, but seemingly robust healthwise. The other has never had any problems I am aware of. I am concerned it may spread though. Would they not automatically just catch it?

Just out of curiosity, do you not do the annual jabs thing, either?

I am not a vet so what do I know but in my experience it is highly likely yours will catch it. It can spread so quickly.

I have had the vaccine for kennel cough, it is a drop up the nose, when their was an epidemic at our agility club and I did not want all of them getting it. It did prevent it in my dogs case but it is not something I give my dogs regularly.

You had it?

Thanks Minimu. I don't think I will be getting her until Sunday now as the transport run tomorrow has fallen through. Just hoping the little girl is given sanctuary before then, or it will be a very sad day indeed.

I spoke to my vet earlier - he is pretty much of the same opinion of course, that it is highly likely they will get it and that it is too late to give the vaccine in any case, so when they show the first sign, whisk them straight to him so he can start treatment then.

I was wondering if starting treatment immediately would work as prevention, but that was subsequent to the call. Do any vets have an opinion on that?

I spend too much time with dogs when my dogs had it

No, starting treatment before symptoms will not stop it happening. Actually many cases need no specific treatment. Most are not antibiotic responsive and the only really useful medication is anti-inflammatory and occasionally cough supressants in severe cases.

Thanks BG. I'm not being in any irresponsible to my two by taking her on, am I, knowing full well they will probably get it??

In my experience most of the vaccine gets sneezed out just after being squirted up their nose!

Chances are your dogs will get KC but should be ok if healthy otherwise. If you are getting the dog today (Thursday) then getting your dogs vaccinated today wont help. Iirc it takes about a week to get in to the dogs system.

Good luck with your foster dog.

we need pictures.

I'm not getting her today, after all, Jax. She is safe, but it will probably end up me picking her up at a rendezvous point on the M42 on Sunday (oh, the glamour!)

Photo's will be forthcoming....

motherjack so sad for this dog. But at least she will have you and your gorgeous dog to be friends with.

Thanks Jax. She won't be with him, though - he died last September :(

I have just put up a couple of photos of my current doggies (my very own canine version of Little and Large ;-) and also nicked a photo of Little Ms Kennel Cough from the rescue site and added that

For the vast majority of dogs it is an "inconvenience" having kennel cough rather than making them particularly unwell. The cough can go on for some weeks to a degree in some cases but so long as they are fine in themselves they probably don't need anything other than monitoring.

Jax - the vaccine is not designed to stay up the nose - it will either get sneezed or snorted out, or trickle down the back of the throat pretty quickly. What it does do is to coat the nasal lining and stimulate a specific immune (IgA) response to the coating which means there is a better primary defence in the nose when a real life challenge occurs. This is specifically why the vaccine is squirted up the nose rather than injected. Don't despair therefore, any money you have spent on the vaccines hasn't been wasted!

That's very useful to know. Thank you BG!

ah thanks bg - are you Bella32? All these name changes really confuse me in my old age!

motherjack I am so sorry for my faux pas.

I saw a pic on your profile and assumed that was your dog, off to look now at the updated pics.

AW! your dogs are lovely. Am bull is too cute, how could you not love it?

sorry, hit post too soon.

There is a white Am Bull near me and it is lovely. The owner is very careful with it although it is a lovely dog. He is always pleased when he sees us out with our GSD's because he knows my dogs are fine with his dog.

When it was snowing last time, we were all out sledging and messing around in the snow. We looked along the path and he and his AmBull were walking along and the bully was pushing a massive log, actually more tree stump along. We were killing ourself laughing and he told us he had been out for ages because the dog wanted to roll it all the way home. The dog looked so pleased with himself, the owner looked frozen!

My dog has the remains of kennel caough atm, my vet told me on tuesday to give a childs does of benylin to him, and that will help.

We re-homed a dog that developed kennel cough. Our other dog didn't catch it but we had to clear up the most amazingly huge projectile snots. Some 7 or 8 inches long! It wasn't too bad when they were fresh but they were a bugger to clean up when they'd dried up overnight.

Jax - no worries - you weren't to know! (I just miss him still!!! He was a very special dog.) Isn't she lovely. I have just found out she is to be called Rosie. It always amuses me when dogs look pleased with themselves. When I first started taking care of Little a couple of weeks ago, I brought her huge bed with her and plonked it on the floor. Large immediately rushed over and, taking up a very small corner of it, spent the rest of the day looking really pleased with herself!

Soaking - REALLY? Benylin???? Did it work????

Cucumber - thanks for the warning! Can't be any worse than the morning I rolled over in bed only to find my old lady had pooed herself in the night though

yuk at cucumbers dogs snot! gross.

But the prize goes to mother that is something never to forget, or to be repeated! I do hope you mean 'old lady' as old dog and not me! or a wife.

Although I didnt scream, I sniggered... the karma fairy will come along and I will end up with dog poo in my ears or something.

Some hexperts say that dogs dont have 'emotions' like humans do, but I say bolleaux to that, course they do, and when they look pleased with themselves it makes me smile inside and out.

no I'm not bella, always posted as BG on here but don't post on the pets section as much as I used to as several knowledgeable others about on here too these days

Ha! Yes, the old lady dog. The brindle one who had just woken up on my photos. (I checked underneath her, just to be sure )

sorry bg mistaken identity.