Local shelters are taking COVID-like precautions over a rise in respiratory illnesses in dogs. Photo provided
By Arden Moore
When the coronavirus first surfaced, medical experts admitted that they had more questions than answers. It took time to diagnose and to develop vaccines.
Now, a rise in respiratory illnesses is occurring in dogs in Palm Beach County and in some other parts of the country. Is it simply due to the most common canine respiratory condition, known as kennel cough, or is it due to the emergence of a new mysterious illness or a lethal canine pneumonia strain?
Experts scramble for answers.
Veterinarians at small-animal practices are reporting more dogs are sicker than normal with respiratory illnesses and some have developed pneumonia. Media reports across the country refer to cases as a canine respiratory mystery illness.
Is it time to worry about and isolate your dog? Should you cancel visits to your favorite dog park or a doggy day care center or boarding facility? Should you hold off on scheduling an appointment for your dog to be groomed?
For answers, I reached out to Dr. Cynda Crawford, DVM, clinical associate professor who chairs the Shelter Medicine Department at the University of Florida in Gainesville. She is the go-to expert on diseases impacting animal shelters throughout the state.
“We are trying to get a handle on it,” says Crawford. “A positive outcome of the veterinarians reporting and the media picking up on these reports is that many veterinary diagnostic labs have reached out to veterinarians to help with sample collection and testing.”
Her message: Be cautious but do not panic. Make sure your dog receives needed vaccinations and boosters. Continue letting your dog mingle with regular members of a dog-walking pack. Do your best to avoid your dog’s coming nose to nose with an unfamiliar dog, especially one who may have a cough or runny nose.
“At this time of year, we expect cases of kennel cough, the most common respiratory disease in dogs,” she says. “It is the dog equivalent of the common cold in people. Most dogs recover, like people do with colds. Please discuss your concerns with your veterinarian because ‘Dr. Google’ may lead dog owners astray with misinformation and cause undue panic.”
Crawford is working directly with officials at shelters and rescue groups in Palm Beach County, including Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control in West Palm Beach, Tri-County Animal Rescue in west Boca Raton and the Peggy Adams Animal Rescue League in West Palm Beach.
Last month, three healthy-appearing dogs housed at the ACC facility died within hours of catching a fast-acting respiratory illness dubbed “strep zoo” (short for Streptococcus equi zooepidemicus). These dogs, named Marcus, Africa and Mimi, were aged 2, 3 and 8.
“Strep zoo is a rapid-onset pneumonia,” says Crawford. “Dogs with this die within a matter of hours. They die from bleeding in the lungs, from suffocation.”
As a precaution, ACC and Tri-County announced that they would temporarily not accept any new dogs to their facilities for about a week in mid-December.
“We are following the protocols that the veterinarians at the University of Florida set up,” says Suzi Goldsmith, executive director at Tri-County. “We never experienced this serious bacterial infection that strikes quickly, and we are taking this very seriously to protect the dogs now housed at our facility.”
She adds that staff are wearing protective facial masks and shoe booties. In addition, the public is not permitted inside the center.
“We don’t want to take the chance of this reaching the dogs here,” she says. “I have moms pregnant and older dogs. Our protective protocol is now as strong as it was when we were all dealing with COVID.”
Peggy Adams did not accept any dogs from ACC as a precaution (for a week ending Dec. 18), confirmed Alyssa Comroe, DVM, director of veterinary medicine.
“We have not had any suspected cases of strep zoo in our population,” says Comroe. “All dogs that begin showing any signs of respiratory illness are immediately moved to isolation, examined by a veterinarian, tested to determine what respiratory pathogen they are infected with, and started on treatment when necessary.”
She adds, “We are not overly concerned about pets coming from the community that have not been in these environments (overcrowded shelters). Part of our intake process is to triage and examine each pet that arrives at our shelter. If we see dogs with any respiratory symptoms, they receive a full veterinary exam and are immediately moved to isolation.”
Crawford urges pet parents to contact their veterinarians if their dogs stop eating, begin coughing, have trouble breathing and act lethargic. The sooner, the better.
“The intense media reporting has stirred up fear and panic in dog owners and some may feel paralyzed as to what to do with their dogs,” says Crawford. “Don’t panic. Please realize that the vast majority of dogs with a respiratory infection recover fairly quickly without any complications. The proportion that develop pneumonia is very small. And those that contract pneumonia and die is even smaller.”
For updates on this issue, visit https://sheltermedicine.vetmed.ufl.edu/news; or the American Veterinary Medical Association’s link on canine respiratory illnesses at www.avma.org/news/making-sense-mystery-illness-found-across-us.
Details on kennel cough are available at www.avma.org/resources-tools/pet-owners/petcare/canine-infectious-respiratory-disease-complex-kennel-cough.
Arden Moore is an author, speaker and master certified pet-first aid instructor. She hosts a radio show, Arden Moore’s Four Legged Life (www.fourleggedlife.com), and the weekly Oh Behave! podcast on PetLifeRadio.com. Learn more by visiting www.ardenmoore.com.
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