Kennel cough vaccine: which dogs need it
DOG · KENNEL COUGH01Which dogs need it
Kennel cough is not one disease but a collective name for the contagious cough dogs pass to each other in close contact. There are two main culprits: the bacterium Bordetella bronchiseptica and the parainfluenza virus. The vaccine is a non-core one — it is given according to the dog’s lifestyle rather than to every dog.
- boarding kennels, day care and shelters, where dogs live side by side;
- dog parks, shows, group training classes;
- grooming salons;
- frequent travel and flights.
02Nose drops or an injection
After that both forms are repeated once a year. Where exposure is constant — the dog boards regularly or travels to shows — the vet may set the booster at every 6 months. A note on parainfluenza: it is often already part of the combination vaccine a dog gets as a core shot. Bordetella never is, so it always comes as a separate vaccine. What the combination covers is set out in adult dog vaccinations.
03What happens after the shot
The intranasal form has a picture of its own, and it alarms owners more than it should. Nasal and eye discharge are very common — that means more than one dog in ten. Sneezing and coughing are common, meaning 1–10 dogs in 100. All of it is usually mild and lasts 2–4 days. In very young puppies the signs are stronger, and in rare cases the cough drags on for up to four weeks.
Rare reactions — wheezing, lethargy, vomiting — call for a vet visit. If the reaction followed an injection, the dog is usually switched to the intranasal form; the vaccination itself is not cancelled. What counts as a normal reaction after any shot is covered in dog vaccine side effects.
04A vaccinated dog is infectious to others
Hardly anyone warns about this, even though it is printed in the vaccine leaflet. After the intranasal vaccine a dog sheds the vaccine strain of the bacterium for up to 6 weeks, and parainfluenza for a few days. Healthy vaccinated dogs are in no danger from it, but during that window it is better to keep the dog away from unvaccinated dogs and immunosuppressed animals. The same goes for people: anyone with a weakened immune system should avoid contact with a recently vaccinated dog for those 6 weeks.
Vaccines, parasite treatments and check-ups in one dated plan.
