17 dogs survive dog flu at Cheyenne shelter

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CBS4 Denver

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) Seventeen dogs that the Cheyenne Animal Shelter that did not euthanize after an outbreak of canine influenza have recovered from the illness, raising questions about whether the shelter made the right decision to put down 42 dogs earlier this month.

Tests by the Wyoming State Veterinary Laboratory confirmed that the dogs spared by shelter Director Alan Cohen did have the flu.

Karolyn Middleton, a member of a local group that has opposed the shelter's decision to put down the dog, said she isn't surprised either to hear of the test results or that all the dogs recovered.

``I think that just proves it's treatable and was a panic and was blown out of proportion,'' she said. ``I think they should have given (the dogs) a chance, and they just made up their mind that this was the way it was going to be.''

The shelter put down the dog in spite of offers of help and voices of dissent from both outside and inside the Cheyenne community, she said.

A number of outside experts questioned the shelter's decision at the time it was made, though most said they did not have enough detailed information to determine whether it was the right decision.

But Cohen continues to defend the action.

``We knew from the beginning that basically every dog that was in this building was going to test positive,'' he said. ``It's just a question of those 42 (that were put down) were sick and getting sicker, and I had no legal authority on the rest.''

The dogs that were spared had not been at the shelter for the legally mandated two days for their owners to pick them up. They were quarantined in the shelter and given food and medical treatment. All of them recovered.

``If they were in a legal position where they were my possession, I would have been forced to euthanize them along with all the rest,'' he said.

In making his decision, Cohen said, suggestions of quarantining the whole building would not have been effective. That was because the 42 dogs that were killed had been essentially quarantined for three weeks and were still sick and getting sicker, he said.

He also cited a lack of information about the disease and the advice of some local veterinarians. Those vets worried that not taking the drastic action might allow the disease to spread into the community and perhaps kill hundreds of dogs.

But outside canine flu experts have said that dogs exhibiting symptoms after about seven days of infection are no longer capable of spreading the disease despite residual lung damage from the infection.

Cohen said that he plans to contribute to research on canine flu by sending blood samples on all the quarantined dogs to the University of Florida. The goal would be to see if any of the dogs no longer have antibodies to the disease, which would indicate a very short period of immunity following infection.

Last week the shelter reopened after making a number of changes to protect dogs against the possible spread of disease.

A 4-month-old yellow Labrador retriever was the first of seven dogs adopted Thursday out of 16 available. The puppy was a foster dog that had been returned to the shelter before being adopted.

Two cats also were adopted, but 37 other animals were brought to the shelter Thursday.


Information from: Wyoming Tribune-Eagle