A rare dog flu outbreak has hit Philadelphia. An increasing number of pets across the town are reportedly getting sick because the virus continues to spread.
In line with Stephen Cole, a veterinarian with the School of Veterinary Medicine on the University of Pennsylvania, dogs getting upper respiratory infections usually are not unusual. Nonetheless, there’s been an alarming spike in canine influenza cases in the realm within the last month or so.
Cole told Motion News that the sudden rise in infections has many dog owners nervous for his or her pets, adding that canine influenza is extremely transmissible.
“Canine influenza is considerably more infectious and transmissible than the everyday bacteria viruses that we see, causing upper respiratory and tract infections in dogs. That is why it’s more concerning,” Cole said.
Certainly one of the concerned pet owners, Mary Dandrea, admitted she’s nervous about taking her pet to the dog park amid the outbreak.
“Truthfully, that makes me want to depart the dog park. I’m slightly concerned about that,” she said, as quoted by Motion News.
Local veterinarians first noticed the trend in early January. They said the virus accountable for the outbreak can mirror symptoms of “kennel cough.”
In an Instagram post shared earlier this month, the Companion Pet Hospital shared the signs and symptoms to observe out for in pet dogs.
“Most dogs will experience 10 to 14 days of runny nose and coughing, but there may be a big subset of those dogs that can progress to pneumonia that may be very life-threatening,” the animal hospital wrote.
“The signs of this illness in dogs are cough, runny nose, fever, lethargy, eye discharge and reduced appetite, but not all dogs will show signs of illness. The severity of illness related to canine flu in dogs can range from no signs to severe illness leading to pneumonia and sometimes death,” it added.
Prior to now years, vets only recorded one or two cases of one of these infection. Cole told the Philadelphia Inquirer that the recent uptick is “abnormal.”
“Influenza, a minimum of in our region, has been pretty rare, and the priority is that it’s so way more each transmissible and infectious [than kennel cough],” he told the outlet.
Companion Pet Hospital assured that humans can’t get sick from canine influenza. Nonetheless, local vets said it is crucial to maintain dogs away from one another to avoid more transmissions.
There’s also a vaccine available, but Cole said it’s been on backorder in some locations. He urged pet owners to talk with their local vet about its availability.