Quote:
Originally Posted by Morkie4  Well Carole, All I know is that I had a dog that was given the nasal vaccine and she actually caught the disease and honked and honked and they put her on antibiotics to clear it up. She was 12 1/2 years old and the first time I gave it to her. So I wouldn't have thought the vet would have given her antibiotics if they didn't help with kennel cough. |
It is NOT the Norm to give antibiotics for Kennel Cough ONLY if secondary problems arise with this. I had MANY cases in my house from the dogs I get out of the pound and the Norm is to use cough meds and wait it out. See below.
HOW IS IT TREATED?
Many dogs that contract Kennel Cough will display only minor signs of coughing that may last seven to ten days and will not require any medication at all. The majority of dogs with the disease continue to eat, sleep, play and act normally... except for that annoying, dry, non-productive coughing that seems so persistent. It is always a good idea, though, to have any dog examined if coughing is noticed because some very serious respiratory diseases such as Blastomycosis, Valley Fever, Heartworms and even cardiac disease might display similar sounding coughing. Your veterinarian, through a careful physical exam and questioning regarding the dog's recent environment, will be able to establish if the dog's respiratory signs are from kennel Cough or some other respiratory insult.
Treatment is generally limited to symptomatic relief of the coughing with non-prescription, and occasionally prescription, cough suppressants. If the dog is running a fever or there seems to be a persistent and severe cough, antibiotics are occasionally utilized to assist the dog in recovering from Kennel Cough. It can happen that secondary bacterial invaders will complicate a case of Kennel Cough and prolong the recovery and severely affect the upper airway. Therefore the use of antibiotics is determined on an individual basis