Oregon has deemed canine respiratory disease a “mystery” after more than 200 cases that began over the summer led to some deaths among dogs that didn’t respond to usual antibiotics.
the American Veterinary Medical Association It said in a statement on Friday that it is monitoring reports of similar illnesses in multiple states and that the infectious agent is under investigation.
A lack of funding and a central reporting agency makes it difficult to track transmission rates, deaths and spread. But the new pet insurance claims data I published Tropanion Show some ideas.
doctor. Scott Weisz, an expert in emerging animal diseases, told USA TODAY in an interview Thursday that although this data is a small subset, it is better than no data and can provide useful insights. He is the author of a book Worms and germs bloga resource referenced by many state veterinary agencies and organizations.
Although respiratory illnesses appear to be on the rise in some areas, there’s probably no need to panic yet, Weisz said. As veterinarians grapple with common cases of kennel cough, an increase in cases through increased pet populations, and the potential emergence of a new disease, Weese said the fact that data shows cases declining in some states is a good sign.
“We seem to have some clusters of disease in some states… and some of them seem to have died down,” Weese said. “There is nothing at this point that confirms that we have this new bug that has emerged.”
more:Mysterious respiratory illness: These are the symptoms that humans should pay attention to.
Respiratory diseases in dogs persist in Canada, Oregon and Nevada
Claims for canine respiratory illnesses with Trupanion have increased in some areas of the country compared to the same period last year.
Claims issued by the company, which make up 2% of total insurance claims, provide insight into where these cases may be on the rise:
These areas showed an increase in respiratory claims from August to October in 2023 compared to 2022.
- Quebec, Canada – 70.73% increase
- Oregon, USA – 61.86% increase
- Ontario, Canada – 25.17% increase
- Nevada, United States – 43.05% increase
- Colorado, United States – 36.46% increase
- California, United States – 8.71% increase
Furthermore, Colorado State University College of Veterinary Medicine saw a 50% rise in dogs contracting pneumonia in 2023 compared to August and November of last year, according to Dr. Michael Lappin, who spoke with Wes at one of the meetings. A panel discussion about the disease on Thursday.
Coronavirus disruptions could lead to some spike in cases
Even with the uptick in pneumonia cases, Weese warned there may be more dogs sick than with more serious illness.
As he described it, changes in the disease could come from a viral change or a change in the population of dogs.
The lockdowns and disruptions to human life caused by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVD19) pandemic have certainly caused the latter. More people became pet owners during the pandemic, some dogs had less exposure to other dogs at daycares or parks while their parents stayed home, and access to veterinary care became more difficult, leading to disruptions in vaccine schedules.
While any of these factors alone may not be responsible for today’s uptick in disease, Weisz says they could have an impact.
“If you add that up, we’re going to start getting into a group of dogs, and that’s going to be more susceptible to infection,” he said.
Why is it difficult to know the rates of respiratory diseases in dogs?
Media attention alone could prompt more people to go to the vet when their dog has a cough and lead to an uptick in reports, Weese said.
But he said the main challenge in understanding the extent of the disease is the lack of organized surveillance, leaving it up to scientists to collect what data they can. However, many snapshots lack historical data.
Another barrier is a lack of testing, as tests do not pick up all possible illnesses that can cause symptoms such as cough.
“So a good percentage of our sick dogs that are coughing all the time will test negative on the PCR panel, because we don’t know what’s in there,” Weese said. “The other thing with testing is that sometimes we do the test too late… and by the time we take the sample, they may not have gotten rid of the virus or bacteria that’s in there.”
Without widespread testing, Wise urges dog owners to be vigilant about disease in the area and consider the risk of your dog becoming seriously ill if he develops a cough. Much like humans, we know whether common colds spread anecdotally, and we only worry when we become visibly ill. The same thinking can be applied to dogs, Weese said.
“If you know that if there is or appears to be a lot of disease in your area, we will be a little more restrictive,” Weese said, noting that limiting contact with other dogs is the way to do that. “If your dog is at higher risk for serious illness, it’s wise to be more stringent.”
Weisz and other experts also recommend keeping pets vaccinated.
Contributors: Nathalie Nessa Alund, Saman Shafiq
