What To Do About Kennel Cough

Dog kennel cough is named variously like canine cough, infectious tracheobronchitis and bordetellosis. Both bacteria and viruses have been found to cause dog kennel cough. It is a condition in which a dog's windpipe and upper bronchi are damaged and irritated due to the action of infectious microorganisms.

Nature Of Dog Kennel Cough

The air breathe in and out by the dogs passes over these exposed endings of nerves and irritates them is causing cough. The name of the cough is Kennel Cough. The main symptom, is a coarse and dry, hacking cough that appears within a week or shortly afterwards of the initial infection by the bacteria and/ or viruses that damages the lining of the windpipe and bronchi exposing the nerve endings.

How Long Does Kennel Cough Last

In most cases or kennel cough, the symptoms are mild. The affect on the health of the dog is minimal. Most cases come without a rise in temperature or lose of appetite. The main affect is the persistent cough that occurs every few minutes through the day. These symptoms normally last for one to three weeks in most cases. The use of antibiotics are not usually needed, however, it is useful to speed the healing of the cough.

How Does a Dog Get Kennel Cough

Dog (bichon frise) kennel cough can be transmitted like a cold in humans. This means that the germs causing kennel cough can be carried in the air, inhaled by another dog causing infection, especially if the recipient dog is susceptible to the microbes. If more than one dog shares a dog kennel the illness spreads among the dogs (this is where the name kennel cough comes from). But it can be acquired anytime and anywhere from an infected dog.

How to Treat Kennel Cough

While antibiotics are sometimes prescribed to treat a case of dog kennel cough, most dogs recover on their own. However, as the illness is accompanied by a persistent and bothersome cough, a veterinarian will often recommend cough-suppressing drugs to help the dog deal with that.

The symptoms of kennel cough are similar to other respiratory diseases. It is important to have the dog examined by a vet when these symptoms are shown. Some dogs have a small chance of getting kennel cough if they are not normally in contact with other dogs. There are vaccines that will prevent kennel cough. In the event that the dog will be in contact with other dogs, it is advised that the vaccine be administered at least a few weeks before the event.