Petvacx
Animal Hospital

Mystery dog illness PSA for our Petvacx parents: At this time, there is a contagious respiratory disease that is affecting dogs across the US. It can cause coughing accompanied by nasal or eye discharge, sneezing, extreme lethargy, loss of appetite, and trouble breathing. It can present initially as a chronic low grade bronchitis however, there are cases that have progressed rapidly to pneumonia that does not respond to antibiotics and fatalities have been reported. If you should notice any coughing or other signs in your dog, it would be advised to keep them separate from other dogs and schedule them to be evaluated by a veterinarian. Though we have vaccines for bordetella, parainfluenza and canine influenza, the causative agent of this respiratory disease is unable to be determined so vaccinations may not provide protection. It would be best to avoid congregation with other dogs at dog parks and doggy day care situations. Please feel free to reach out if you have any further questions!