Oceanside dogs test positive for dog flu

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The Union-Tribune

By Angelica Martinez

SAN DIEGO – Two dogs at an Oceanside kennel have tested positive for dog flu, the first cases in San Diego County, county animal control officials said Tuesday.
The dogs and 62 others who may have been infected are being quarantined for seven to 10 days to prevent them from spreading the flu to other dogs, said Gundula Dunne, a doctor at the county's Animal Disease and Diagnostic Lab.


County Animal Services officials believe the dogs were infected at the Canine Companions for Independence kennel in Oceanside recently. The dog believed to have brought the flu to the county came from Colorado, and did not display any signs of sickness when he arrived, Dunne said.
The dog started coughing and sneezing on May 20. There were 65 dogs at the kennel at the time, Dunne said, and 64 of them ended up being exposed to the flu.

Those dogs are being tested and results are not yet available.

Dog flu is spread by coughing and sneezing. Dogs with a mild form of dog flu also have nasal discharge and a mild fever that lasts 10 to 21 days, officials said.

Contaminated objects and people can also help spread the flu from dog to dog. People do not contract the disease, however.

The disease, which was discovered in other parts of the country in 2003, crossed over from horses to greyhound racing dogs, Dunne said. Later, in 2004, health officials discovered that family dogs had started to get the disease.

“Because the flu is so new to dogs, a large number of dogs get sick with it because they are not used to it,” Dunne said. But, “most dogs will get the flu and recover from it. Between 80 to 90 percent of dogs may get the symptoms and go back to being healthy dogs.”

Though there is no vaccine for dog flu, Dunne said the mortality rate is low, 1 percent to 5 percent.

Severe cases can develop into pneumonia that may require a dog to be hospitalized.

Officials urged dog owners to call their veterinarians if their dogs develop a cough. They warned that dogs that are coughing should not be taken to places where they might infect other dogs, and that owners should always wash their hands after handling a sick dog.