my 3 year old lab has been coughing for about 4 weeks now showing all the signs of kennel cough. i spoke to the vet who gave him a course of antibiotics but they have made no difference. he is very fit and shows no other signs of ill health. the vet now advising to leave him for another couple of weeks just to see if it passes. your thoughts please. thanks in advance tam
dog coughing
- Thread starter Tam16
- Start date
If the cough is not getting worse, it should work itself out. I was told to give my dog Benylin (non-drousy version) to ease the throat.
However, three of my dogs had KC at the same time. The youngest (<18 months) shrugged it off after 3 days, the next up, 4 years old took two weeks, and the 8 year old got bronchial pneumonia and got very poorly indeed. He survived though.
However, three of my dogs had KC at the same time. The youngest (<18 months) shrugged it off after 3 days, the next up, 4 years old took two weeks, and the 8 year old got bronchial pneumonia and got very poorly indeed. He survived though.
Has the dog actually been examined by a vet?
Sometimes kennel cough can persist for some time. If the dog is still coughing I would get it examined by the vet. It can be a symptom of something more serious - heart problems, foreign body etc.
There is actually little evidence that cough medicine does much for people and I wouldn't recommend the use of human medicines in dogs without consulting your vet.
Sometimes kennel cough can persist for some time. If the dog is still coughing I would get it examined by the vet. It can be a symptom of something more serious - heart problems, foreign body etc.
There is actually little evidence that cough medicine does much for people and I wouldn't recommend the use of human medicines in dogs without consulting your vet.
baguio
Well-Known Member
Once he's fit get him vaccinated every year! I ended up getting my lab's chest x-rayed because he coughed for so long after catching kennel cough. He eventually recovered after 6 months of light duties and is now A1 again! On the plus side, it's out of season now so no rush to get him fit. Just let him take it easy and try not to let him get too excited or let him exercise too much!
Good luck and hope he recovers soon.
Good luck and hope he recovers soon.
Had a good discussion with my vet about this, and decided no longer to vaccinate. Much more important is to avoid exposure to diseased dogs.
We made this decision because our dog is increasingly terrified of vets, particularly when the nasal vaccine is administered, and it has become very distressing for all concerned.
Also if your dog has got it, please don't let it mix with other dogs.
The vaccine is of very limited effectiveness, there are several different causes of "kennel cough", and the vaccine is only effective against a few strains of one of them. Similar to the human flu-jab. Google "kennel cough vaccine effectiveness" for more info.
baguio
Well-Known Member
That's fine Sharpie if you knew the dog you're about to bump into has kennel cough so that you can avoid it, sadly I didn't or I would have. Most people are too inconsiderate to keep their dog in when it's in season so they certainly are not going to when it has a cough. I realise that the vaccine will not protect against all strains but then neither does the flu vaccine but it's better than nothing IMO. Many kennels in my area now require the dogs to be vaccinated against kennel cough so I don't have a choice now anyway as I do have to put them in kennels sometimes.
If you kennel your dog then absolutely do vaccinate. And if a kennel did not require sight of a vaccination certificate I'd run a mile.
We have discussed the risks and benefits with our vet and reached a particular decision which is right for us. If we ever did have to expose our dog to a higher risk, e.g. kennel him or mix with many other dogs e.g. shows etc. then we would re-vaccinate him. That is very unlikely to happen.
The nasal vaccine is the most effective, and "takes" either immediately or within a few days, depending who you believe.
The vaccine (being administered up the nose) provides fast protection, but it still requires the immune system to respond and begins to offer protection in 2-3 days.
It is not as simple as just avoiding infected animals as many dogs are thought to be asymptomatic carriers of the common bacteria and it is a stressful situation that can allow that to recrudesce and cause disease (and then spread). Classic stressful time being kennels. It is very difficult to screen for carrier animals and to the best of my knowledge it is not only dogs that have had clinical kennel cough that can carry it.
The vaccines protect against one or two of the most common causes of kennel cough; all cover Boredetella bronchiseptica and some cover parainfluenza virus. Dogs that get kennel cough, but have been vaccinated, seem to get a less severe form that responds much more quickly to treatment.
That said, in the interests of full disclosure, my own dog gets an annual booster but I don't vaccinate her for kennel cough. If she mixed with other dogs, did any real work or was ever kennelled then I would.
It is not as simple as just avoiding infected animals as many dogs are thought to be asymptomatic carriers of the common bacteria and it is a stressful situation that can allow that to recrudesce and cause disease (and then spread). Classic stressful time being kennels. It is very difficult to screen for carrier animals and to the best of my knowledge it is not only dogs that have had clinical kennel cough that can carry it.
The vaccines protect against one or two of the most common causes of kennel cough; all cover Boredetella bronchiseptica and some cover parainfluenza virus. Dogs that get kennel cough, but have been vaccinated, seem to get a less severe form that responds much more quickly to treatment.
That said, in the interests of full disclosure, my own dog gets an annual booster but I don't vaccinate her for kennel cough. If she mixed with other dogs, did any real work or was ever kennelled then I would.
Also in interest of disclosure, our dog has had the kennel cough vaccine for six years, as well as his other boosters which continue.
Despite official advice that it becomes ineffective after 12 months, I strongly suspect that some continuing immunity remains.
I am old enough to have natural immunity from measles (had it), mumps (had it), smallpox (vaccinated), TB (exposed, natural immunity BCG test), hep B (gammaglobulin injection when it was still risky), yellow fever, countless others I now forget, regular flu jabs, pneumonia jabs, shingles (ex. measles) treated with antivirals etc. etc. and TBH every vaccination has had more or less unpleasant side effects. Nowadays I avoid them.
Despite official advice that it becomes ineffective after 12 months, I strongly suspect that some continuing immunity remains.
I am old enough to have natural immunity from measles (had it), mumps (had it), smallpox (vaccinated), TB (exposed, natural immunity BCG test), hep B (gammaglobulin injection when it was still risky), yellow fever, countless others I now forget, regular flu jabs, pneumonia jabs, shingles (ex. measles) treated with antivirals etc. etc. and TBH every vaccination has had more or less unpleasant side effects. Nowadays I avoid them.
