New Jersey

Health Alert: Canine Flu outbreak in New Jersey

July 15, 2008 : 7:09 AM

Since the June 19th notification that canine influenza was identified at a Burlington County boarding kennel, additional outbreaks have been identified in Sussex and Mercer County. At this time, several hundred dogs have become ill with one reported fatality associated with these outbreaks.

On July 3rd, the Pet Spa Kennel in Hardyston received the confirmation they had been both expecting and dreading that they had been hit by Canine Influenza, otherwise known as the Canine Flu.

The kennel had already called and canceled all their boarders for a 2 week period from July 1-14th, and had hired their Veterinarian, Karen Dashfield DVM to assist in both elimating this disease from their kennel, and treating those clients who were sickened by the disease.

Shut down of a kennel is an essential tool to eliminate canine flu, as the dogs themselves are the way the disease is spread as the virus dies very quickly outside the body.

Veterinarians who identify cases of canine influenza outbreaks are asked to notify the Department's Infectious and Zoonotic Disease Program and work with the local health department with jurisdiction if the outbreak involves a kennel, shelter, pet shop or pound.

What is Canine Influenza? To paraphrase current information, it is a new virus that mutated from horse flu in early 2002 from what we currently know. It was first identified in 2004, in outbreaks of respiratory disease in greyhound tracks in Florida.

Dogs have no natural immunity, and there is no vaccination available, so the disease is close to 100% infective. 80% of exposed dogs will become clinically ill, with symptoms ranging from a cough and nasal discharge with low grade fever (most cases) to high grade fever and pneumonia (a small percentage of cases).

The most current information is that 1-5% of the dogs that get the severe disease (high fever and pneumonia) will die from their infection, even with intensive care. 20% of the dogs become asymptomatic carriers and never show signs. Once exposed to Canine Influenza a dog should be isolated from all other dogs for 2 weeks, even if it NEVER shows any signs!

Canine Influenza last for 8 - 12 hours on skin, 24 hours on clothing,

and 48 hours on hard surfaces

Does having a Canine Influenza outbreak reflect on a kennel's

cleanliness? NO. Canine Influenza is carried by dogs, is airborne, and does not live long in the environment. No matter how clean a facility is, they are powerless to prevent the entry of this virus into their facility.

The best a kennel/ shelter can do is to turn away dogs that arrive with

a cough, and immediately isolate any dog that starts coughing during

their stay. Unfortunately 20% of the dogs are asymptomatic carriers, so the perfectly healthy dog that comes and goes without a cough can infect a whole kennel!

How is Canine Influenza Treated? As the actual "flu" is a virus, it has to run its course. Dogs are prone to secondary bacterial sinus infections, and the dogs that develop pneumonias are usually secondary bacterial pneumonias, so broad spectrum antibiotics or combinations of antibiotics are a main stay of treatment.

Cough suppressants are often used, however it is actually detrimental to use high powered cough suppressants, as the whole purpose of the cough is to clear the airways of toxic substances and mucous. Robitussin type compounds and mucolytics (which loosen up the mucous) may offer some relief. Intravenous fluids are appropriate for dogs that develop pneumonia, and some dogs with pneumonia require nebulization therapy.

How do I prevent my dog from getting Canine Influenza? The only real answer is to keep the dog at home and avoid all contact with other dogs..... But as most of us choose not to live as hermits in the dog community, the answer is that you can't. Hopefully there will be a vaccine soon. In the mean time, all you can do is be careful.

Avoid places where large numbers of dogs of unknown status congregate. While dog parks are a wonderful idea, they are a huge mixing ground for diseases. Small neighborhood playgroups of known dogs and people at your yard or a neighbor's yard are a safer bet. When taking your dog for walks and to the pet store, avoid direct contact with other dogs. If your dog is exposed to a coughing dog, assume that your dog is contagious for 2 weeks, and keep it isolated, even if it doesn't show signs.

When having your dog groomed, boarded, or stay in daycare, ask specifically if they have had any sick/ coughing dogs in their facility in the last 2 weeks. Business owners are not always up front about this, but you would be surprised how many are, especially if asked directly.

When going for a vet appointment, where appropriate check in and sit well away from the other dogs in the waiting room, or if you feel the area is too crowded, let the staff know you are waiting outside. If you hear a dog coughing in a public forum, steer clear, and advise the people in charge so that animal can be removed.

Finally, what should you do if your animal care facility has a severe

outbreak of "kennel cough" type disease? Immediately isolate all

coughing animals. Seek Veterinary care immediately for these dogs, and ask your supervising veterinarian to test for canine flu- the NJ State Department of Agriculture Lab will run this test- blood is best, but it takes 7 days for a dog to develop a positive titer. If you live outside New Jersey, other state's have both commercial and health department labs that will run these tests. Dogs that just got sick will require 2 tests, one now, and one in 2 weeks.

Dogs that got sick 7 or more days earlier will likely test positive if they have flu. DON'T bury your head in the sand and hope it will go away... if its canine flu the outbreak will just get worse if you ignore it, and dogs will die! In order to control this disease, we need to recognize it quickly, admit to having it when it occurs so people can take proper precautions to prevent further spread, and work closely with veterinarians and the public to minimize the damage the outbreak causes.

Veterinarians who are overseeing disease control at kennels, shelters and other animal facilities should review the sanitation and infection control practices with management staff at these facilities. Suspect canine influenza cases should be placed in respiratory isolation (different airspace) from other canines as soon as possible and examined by a veterinarian.

Suspect cases should treated and remain in respiratory isolation until their shedding period is over: a 10-14 day period post-onset date is recommended to be on the safe side, assuming the dog has recovered.

Exposed dogs should be quarantined for 10-14 days after their last exposure and monitored for onset of clinical signs. The owners of all potentially exposed dogs not being quarantined at a facility should be notified and told to consult with their veterinarian if their dogs develop signs of respiratory illness. Owners should isolate ill dogs from other dogs and also exclude them from places where dogs congregate, such as dog parks.

The UC Davis Koret Shelter Medicine website has information sheets on various health and emergency issues you may run into, including the Canine Flu.

Animal facility staff and veterinarians should institute infection control practices, emphasizing proper hand washing, to avoid inadvertent spreading of the virus. The facility should be ventilated as much as possible and thoroughly cleaned and disinfected (including potentially contaminated objects such as food and water bowls, toys, etc) with quaternary ammonium products, a 10 percent bleach solution or other cleaning compounds with strong antiviral properties.

Veterinarians can submit diagnostic specimens from suspect cases to the New Jersey Department of Agriculture (NJDA), Animal Health Diagnostic Laboratory for testing. More information on laboratory testing is available here:

http://www.state.nj.us/agriculture/divisions/ah/pdf/feeschedule.pdf or by calling 609-292-3965.

If you have any questions or to report an outbreak, please contact Dr. Faye Sorhage or Dr. Colin Campbell, NJDHSS, Infectious and Zoonotic Disease Program via phone (609)-588-3121 or email: faye.sorhage@doh.nj.state.us or colin.campbell@doh.state.nj.us.

We will provide updates from Dr. Dashfield as we get them.

Posted by George DeGiovanni, Best Friends Network.

Information provided by Dr. Karen Dashfield and posted with her permission.