Now I'm Freaking!
 

I just read in the NY Times that there is a canine virus going around that can be fatal and incurable! Of course I had just taken Jackson to the groomers this morning.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/22/na.../22canine.html

virus
 

I hear you!
I am scared to death of these things. I had a house full of dogs, I was breeding and showing..suddenly we started hearding about dogs dying from Parvo. People lost dozens of their dogs before they got a vaccine. Several were m good friends, also a couple grooming clients lost their Yorks..My good friend and I never went near a dog show for one full year. Going to the vet was a nightmare. I was a paranoid idiot! For a long time they thought the parvo virus was airborne.
When they found out it was passed through fecal contamination at least we could change our clothes and shoes before coming from a show.

I hope they get this new virus under control fast...I was suppose to got to a Yorkie picnic in Nov..it is still warm here in FLorida of course..I am not going now.

Darn it! I forgot my password for the NYT, so I looked the article up in another paper. Here it is:

Mysterious dog flu found in boarded pets

Norma and Harvey Sheer checked their two pet English springer spaniels into a kennel they had used for years before they left for vacation earlier this month.

The West Nyack couple were shocked when they returned home Thursday to find that the kennel, Best Friends in Chestnut Ridge, had called their son while they were away to pick up the two dogs because of an outbreak of a mysterious illness in the facility.

"Sure enough, as soon as we got them home from the pet sitter last night, they started coughing," Harvey Sheer said yesterday.

He took the dogs, Lilly and Lizzie, to their veterinarian yesterday morning and was told that both animals showed signs of canine influenza, a new and potentially deadly virus diagnosed in dogs throughout the region.

"It's very unnerving," Sheer said. "You don't expect something like this to happen. I just pray that we caught it in time."

It's unclear how widespread the virus is. More than 100 cases have been reported at Best Friends in Chestnut Ridge. As many as 40 dogs that boarded at Graceland Kennels in North Castle also have come down with the illness, owner Bob Gatti said.

Animal care professionals were told earlier this month there was "reason to believe that canine influenza virus is now present in the New York City area," according to a letter from David W. Chico, a veterinarian with the state Department of Agriculture and Markets.

"Reports have been received indicating an unusual form of 'kennel cough' has been seen in a number of veterinary practices," the letter said.

Tests done on dogs with symptoms of the illness showed they had a form of canine influenza, according to the state. The illness starts mimicking the common kennel cough. Many animals go on to develop pneumonia, a serious and sometimes deadly complication.

Dr. Cynda Crawford, a veterinarian at the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine, sent out an advisory Aug. 12 warning that "outbreaks of canine influenza virus, which causes an acute respiratory infection, have been identified in dogs in shelters, humane societies, boarding facilities and veterinary clinics in Florida."

The illness was first noted in Florida greyhound kennels two or three years ago, according to Dr. Edward Dubovi, director of virology at Cornell University's Animal Health Diagnostic Center.

The influenza appears to be similar to a type normally found in horses, according to Dubovi.

"From a public-health standpoint, it's always an alarming occurrence when a virus leaps to another species, particularly into a domesticated species, as this is generally a sign of the virus' strength and ability to adapt," Dubovi said in a statement released yesterday.

Local veterinarians and animal facilities were caught off guard when the virus began showing up in the New York area.

"It's a new and highly contagious pathogen in dogs," said Debra Bennetts, spokeswoman for Best Friends, a chain of kennels headquartered in Norwalk, Conn.

Dogs can be exposed to the virus at kennels, dog runs, grooming facilities or any other place where they come into contract with other dogs, she said.

Workers at the company's Chestnut Ridge kennel started noticing just before Labor Day that an unusually large number of dogs were coughing, Bennetts said. A veterinarian treated those dogs for kennel cough, also called canine cough or parainfluenza, and they seemed to get better.

But on Sept. 8 workers were told that one of the dogs came down with pneumonia. Over the next several days, the kennel learned of more dogs that had boarded there and had developed serious illness.

"At that point, we realized we were dealing with something beyond normal parainfluenza," Bennetts said.

Owners of dogs boarding there were notified and asked to pick up the animals as soon as possible. The kennel is closed so workers can disinfect it top to bottom, Bennetts said.

The company, which also operates Best Friends White Plains and Balmoral Kennel in Harrison, sent out letters to more than 100 veterinarians in Westchester, Rockland and northern New Jersey warning them about the illness. No cases have been reported in the company's other kennels.

Most dogs that have contracted the flu have recovered, Bennetts said. But at least one animal that boarded in Chestnut Ridge died.

Gatti said that workers in his North Castle kennel first noticed dogs were getting sick in July. None of the cases was fatal, he said.

The facility closed its three kennel buildings and completely disinfected them, Gatti said in a letter to customers.

The Oradell Animal Hospital in Paramus, N.J., not far from Chestnut Ridge, has treated 15 dogs for the condition and has had one fatality, according to a letter the facility sent to other veterinarians last week.

Veterinarians are prescribing antibiotics to treat secondary bacterial infections that seem to develop with the virus, said Dr. Russell Petro of Valley Cottage Animal Hospital, who is treating the Sheers' dogs.

Owners of sick pets say they are worried because there seems to be little information about the disease.

"We left our girls at the kennel, and they were fine," Norma Sheer said, referring to her dogs. "Then we come home, and we find out about this disease that no one ever heard of. It's very upsetting."

http://www.nyjournalnews.com/apps/pb...509240316/1018

virus
 

I think I will be using the mobile vet next week..one good freeze usually takes care of these things..but I doubt that is likely here. LOL

this is scary. i hope that they get it under control and fast!

yes ive heard of the dog flu and its already taken 7 dogs life included one case here in seattle. Im keeping Pudgy inside for awhile. no parks for Pudge right now!

Is this an airborne virus or do they catch it from contaminated feces?

you know this is really scary considering i heard of something like this not long ago. never gave it much more thought until now...i visited my mentor a few weeks back. she is a long time breeder of yorkies who lives about an hour from my home. i met her many years ago and she taught me so very much. well during our visit earlier this month, i wanted to go into her puppy room and see her new babies...i had always been allowed in her puppy room before. well on this paticular visit she says to me "robbie, you know i know that you love to see the babies, but there is a new strain of some kind of rare kennel cough going around and i am not letting anyone in the puppy room at this time" . i asked her if she could tell me more about it, but she said there wasn't much that she could tell me , only that i should be very careful with my own pups...so during my visit i had to settle for playing with some of her beautiful adults without babies and eating tomato sandwiches, lol. this is really scary and i hope they get it under control. now i'm kind of freaking out because i attended the nc prettiest pet pageant with 2 of my 6 month old's last weekend...

Thank you for this article, now I'm really concerned because the village of Chestnut Ridge, where 88 dog have come down with this disease is where I live. Its a small village in upstate New York so for 88 dogs to have this is really scarey.. no more walks for Desi. Below is the paragraph. The Best Friend Kennel is around the corner from my house.

"In Chestnut Ridge, north of New York City, about 88 dogs became sick by early September, and 15 percent of those required hospitalization, said Debra Bennetts, a spokeswoman for Best Friends Pet Care, a chain of boarding kennels. The kennel was vacated for decontamination by Sept. 17.

About 17 of the infected dogs were treated at the Oradell Animal Hospital in Paramus, N.J., where one died and two more were still hospitalized, a staff veterinarian said."

Does anyone know the incubation period? I take Desi out every morning for a walk around the block and I use the community park. All of which is in the area of the Best Friend Kennel. I'm going to be watching Desi like a hawk, she better not even sneeze !! :(

Everyone on this site should know about this!
 

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/27/he...icy/27dog.html

http://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news...ocal-headlines

I think I heard this morning or yesterday that there have been cases seen in TX now too. Don't quote me on that but I believe that's what the news said. Starts out looking like kennel cough. Watch those babies closely! I think with all the evacuating and moving around due to these hurricanes, a lot of animals are going to be exposed to animals from far away that they normally wouldn't have.

As if we don't have enough to worry about and now this !!!! :eek: Sure glad you posted this article for all of us, Hannah. This will allow us to all have a heads up incase our vets had not been informed. Thanks.....

Update on Canine Flu
 

Forgot to add these
 

http://www.forbes.com/lifestyle/heal...out528196.html

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/n...7_dog_flu.html

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=1152491&page=1