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July 18, 2008 To Our Central Bark Family: The purpose of this letter is to inform you that dogs that attended Central Bark during June and July of 2008 were most likely exposed to Canine Influenza. We believe the exposure period began after June 15. The highest occurrence of “kennel cough” symptoms occurred over the Fourth of July weekend. The earliest possible case reported to me was a dog who boarded here June 15-19 (but this may have been “kennel cough.”). I also had a few mild cases of “kennel cough” reported over the Memorial Day weekend, which may or may not have been Canine Flu cases (although I think we would have seen many more cases sooner had it been Canine Flu). After the high infection rate became obvious, I took steps to identify which disease our dogs had been exposed to. All of the dogs here have had Bordetella and DHPP vaccinations. The Bordetella vaccine is not very effective, but the unusually high rate of infection was not consistent with prior outbreaks. On July 11, Dr. Brase from Rockrimmon Animal Clinic submitted a blood test from one of our sick dogs, to check for Canine Influenza antibodies – that result came back today as negative, but will need to be done again in 2 weeks. On July 14, Dr. Harrell and Dr. Stahl from Centennial Animal Hospital, came to Central Bark and did throat/eye swabs on 4 dogs for a complete upper respiratory panel performed at CSU. This test has a faster turnaround and I received the results yesterday – 3 of the dogs were negative for all diseases, and one tested positive for Canine Influenza. It is a reasonable assumption that all of the dogs who developed symptoms recently have had the Canine Flu. If the timing of the testing is not quite right (too early for the antibody titer test or too late for the swab test), it’s possible to get false negatives. Our confirmed case was reported to the state veterinary association. Please consult your veterinarian if you are interested in testing to confirm if your dog developed flu antibodies. Why were so many dogs exposed to Canine Flu at Central Bark? A recently exposed dog without symptoms came into our facility and spread the disease quickly to many other dogs. Dogs are most contagious within the first 72 hours after being exposed to the Canine Flu, and typically develop symptoms 3-5 days after exposure. So, someone could have brought an apparently healthy dog to Central Bark, who later developed Canine Flu – and that dog’s owner would assume that their dog “caught” the Canine Flu here when in fact their dog brought it here. We will never know which dog (or dogs) came in with the Canine Flu to begin with. Canine Influenza is a relatively new disease. The symptoms are similar to the cough caused by Bordetella, but the Canine Flu is viral rather than bacterial. There was a major outbreak of Canine Flu in the Denver area two years ago. Over half the canine population in Denver has since been exposed. I also have heard stories about a possible outbreak of Canine Flu at the Bear Creek dog park in March/April 2008, although am unaware if any of these cases were confirmed. Most dogs here have had the mild form, although I am aware of 3 dogs with high fevers who needed extensive care. A dog’s normal temperature is around 101-102 – dogs with a temperature of 103 or higher should probably get additional veterinary care. A lethargic dog who is reluctant to eat or drink likely has a fever. I am not a veterinarian and can only provide limited information based on my personal experience caring for dogs who became sick while staying at Central Bark. I urge anyone whose dog has symptoms of “kennel cough” to contact their veterinarian immediately, and please do let your vet know that your dog may have been exposed to Canine Flu. The Canine Flu virus is very susceptible to bleach and quaternary ammonium. Even without disinfecting, it typically will only survive for three days in the environment. At Central Bark we are using plenty of bleach and HDQ (a quaternary ammonium disinfectant). However, we cannot eliminate this disease from our facility simply by disinfecting – the key to successfully eliminating it is to not have contagious dogs staying here. The disease is airborne so attempting to separate unexposed dogs from contagious dogs will only be moderately successful – if at all. The virus can contaminate clothing, so a person can carry the disease from an infected dog to a healthy dog. The key to creating a healthy environment here is to prevent all unexposed dogs from entering Central Bark, until we know that the dogs we have staying here are no longer contagious. That is how we break the cycle of disease transmission. Dogs exposed in early July are now welcome back. Since we have been turning away unexposed dogs, we expect to have “business as normal” by July 28. ,br> Dogs exposed to Canine Flu are most contagious within 3 days of being exposed, before they may even have symptoms. Most dogs are no longer contagious after 7 days. This would be consistent with the test results received – the one dog that tested positive had just started showing symptoms that day, while the others had been coughing for 3-7 days. To be on the safe side, based on advice from Dr.Harrell we are recommending that dogs that have recently left our facility be quarantined for 14 days. About 20% of exposed dogs will not have any symptoms, although they will still shed the virus for about 1 week after exposure. Please avoid going to dog parks, training classes, pet-friendly stores, etc. while your dog might be contagious. As a dog daycare owner, the scariest thing about this outbreak has been the large number of dogs that became sick, and the fact that a few dogs became very sick. I am actually relieved that this is Canine Flu and not some incredibly vaccine-resistant strain of Bordetella, since dogs with Flu remain contagious for a shorter period than dogs with Bordetella. There is currently no approved vaccine for Canine Flu available, but the good news is that the dogs exposed to it are expected to have an immunity lasting at least 2 years. Our rescued pit bull Bolo, who had Canine Flu in August 2006 (while at the shelter in Aurora) several months before coming to Central Bark, remained healthy throughout this outbreak. I am so sorry that so many dogs became sick, but there was no way for me to prevent it. All I can do is make sure dogs with symptoms are treated, inform clients of the risk as we become aware of it, get tests done to determine the cause of the outbreak, and continue to keep you informed. I hope all our furry friends are feeling better! Sincerely, Sharon Montville and the Central Bark Staff |
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