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56 FOUR SEASONS BREEZE | FEBRUARY 2024 Tails & Trails - All Pets Veterinarians across the country are scrambling to treat the rising number of dogs sick with a severe type of respiratory illness. Canine respiratory infections, especially dog flu, are common, often causing outbreaks in shelters and dog daycare centers. The current surge has been spreading in areas of the U.S. and Canada over the last year. In Colorado, the number of canine pneumonia cases rose by 50 percent from September through November of this year, compared to the same months in 2022. "More dogs may be getting severely ill because they have been infected with multiple pathogens at the same time, including canine influenza, kennel cough, and mycoplasma pneumonia," said Dr. Deborah Silverstein, Chief of Emergency Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. This is similar to Covid-19, influenza, and RSV that affected people last fall and winter. Many dogs may have lower resistance to infections because pandemic-era restrictions kept them out of day cares or boarding facilities and they weren't exposed to circulating viruses or bacteria, experts note. There have also been reported decreases in canine vaccination rates. A recent study found that nearly half of dog owners are hesitant about vaccinations for their pets. "We've got more dogs that have a lower level of resistance because they've been exposed less over the last couple of years and they've had less vaccination," Dr. Scott Weese, an infectious disease veterinarian at the Ontario Veterinary College, said during an online briefing recently. "So that means just with our normal respiratory disease that's always there and always circulating around, we can see more disease and more spikes." Just like Covid strains can be milder or more severe, symptoms of canine respiratory infection include coughing, sneezing, and red, runny eyes. If a dog has difficulty breathing or stops eating, it could be a more serious problem and the dog should be taken to a vet. Vets working on the front lines in private practice are seeing higher numbers of dogs with respiratory illness, and some of those dogs are progressing to pneumonia. Vets are reporting that the dogs are not responding as well or as quickly to the normal standard of care. Scientists are working hard to find the cause of this outbreak, of these new respiratory infections. ~ Vivian Walker, vivr@sbcglobal.net

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