Cooper, 18 month male lab came home yesterday from day care with kennel cough. Slept most of the night..heard him coughing at 3AM and then again 6:30AM. Called vet....said if he is eating well and not lethargic to give him Robitussin DM (cough medicine) and see how he does. If does not get better in a few days and gets lethargic or is not eating, she will put him on an antibiotic. He also threw up some mucus overnight....I am keeping him as quiet as possible today ... no walks...no excitement. Not easy! Hope he sleeps...when he does, he does not cough. Anyone have any other suggestions? Anything will be most helpful. Thanks.
It's a bit "shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted" but does the Day Care establishment not ask for sight of Kennel Cough vaccination details before accepting a dog?
Yes, they do and Cooper has had all his shots, too. And he has not been close to a single dog other than the day care ones for at least a couple of weeks. He did go to the groomers a couple of weeks ago.....I just cannot figure it out. And it is awful seeing him gag and cough......guess this too shall pass but, in the meantime, it is awful not being able to help him. Do you know if honey and warm water might be able to soothe his throat?
Oh yes, warm water and honey is excellent, or even just a teaspoon of honey , mine will eat it from a spoon, love it, its very soothing and also has antiseptic properties . Re the vaccine , I was told that, like the common cold, there are various strains of KC , so its the luck of the draw when a vaccine is given , hope he feels better soon .
Pongo had kennel cough and LOVED runny honey. A big spoon dipped in the jar, then allowed to run back into the jar until the spoon just has a thin coating.....then let him very slowly lick it off. One lick at a time, so it very gradually coats his throat. I think it is better to use it neat rather than dilute it, because it coats better. I have a feeling Pongo was quite disappointed when his cough cleared up and his honey rations stopped.
As I understand it there are several strains of kennel cough and the vaccine doesn't cover all of them. A bit like human flu.
I'm sorry Cooper has picked this up and I hope it clears quickly,you are right it must be awful listening to him coughing.This has reminded me of a question that came up on Facebook page I'm on the other day....someone mentioned that you vaccinate against Kennel cough every 6 months not every 12.....all,the responses agreed....I only do it annually with Dexter's other boosters.Does anyone else do it every 6 months? X
Vaccine frequency depends on the brand of vaccine you use. Both of mine have had kennel cough despite being fully vaccinated. It can be really awful. If Cooper gets really bad (and some do - one of mine was coughing/vomiting 20 times an hour at one point) then a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory such as Metacam from your vet really helps reduce the inflammation in the throat, lowers the temperature and makes them feel much, much better. You only need this if they are really bad though, and simple things like honey don't help.
Thanks Lochan,I have all my vaccs at the same vet so I'm sure they would tell me if he needed it more frequently than annually...I' might give them a quick ring just to check that he's ok though x
Thanks, All. I am giving him Robitussin pills every 4 hours as directed and went out and purchased organic honey and just gave him a small teaspoon of it that he licked off the spoon itself. I find pills in little pill pouches that taste like chicken are a lot easier to give him over the liquid! He has been sleeping on and off most of the day......one of the side effects of Robitussin so that is working out well. But, when he wakes up he goes through an awful bout of coughing plus sometimes brings up a mucous "thing" that is not too pleasant for him of course. After his coughing bout, though, he looks quite happy but has not been active at all most of the day...neither have I encouraged any activity. Was told not to walk him and not to let him do anything that would bring on a couphing bout. So, again....thanks for all the advice. I dont know how he got it, but he will be in "home jail" until he gets better because I know this is very contagious to otheer dogs. Have a great evening.
Bella caught it , but I hadn't had her vaccinated as didn't think she would need it , how wrong I was, I misunderstood as she's not boarded etc but does go on dog walks at lunch and to dog shows. It cleared in 3 weeks and the honey really helped. Not sure whether to get her vaccinated now though or is it not worth it once they've had it?
Cooper has been vaccinated since he was out and about and he got it when he was a little puppy.....probably from the groomer......so he got it even though vaccinated....and this time, he got it again at 18 months even though he is vaccinated. So, YES, vaccinate. Doesnt mean he will NOT get it but he will get better quicker than if he had not. You know, CDM, it is awful to hear them hack away almost like they are choking and you can do nothing about it. I have given him honey twice already in a tsp....he loves it so that's good. Plus the cough medicine....hope both will be helping him soon. I think there is a noticeable pause between bouts of coughing because he is awake more now and he does cough about every half hour but less times....either that or it is my imagination hoping he is getting better! Right now he is sitting out on the deck looking for something or other......have no idea what's out there right now! but it is lot more than what he has done all day so I am happy!
Good to hear he might be on the mend! At least with honey it is all good, natural organic stuff so you know you can give him as much as you like with no harm. It certainly seemed to help Pongo.
Well, made it through the night! Cooper coughed every three hours during the night. Got up this morning at 7:30, gave him cough med, honey and breakfast. He has coughed a couple of times since getting up. At least he did not "bring anything up" overnight....so that's an improvement! CDM you said it cleared in three weeks.....that long???? Ouch! Does that mean Bella coughed every hour or did it get less and less as days went on??? Hope so. My pup has been sooooo good.....he has not shown any interest in going outdoors (very hot our there this week) so that has made it easier...the less moving around the less he coughs. Will keep you all posted and thank you for kind notes....Cooper appreciates it and so do I!
Pongo's lasted about 3 weeks in all, but it did gradually fade (after a week or so he was only coughing a few times a day). It is truly horrid to hear them and not be able to help! But they do seem to understand what they need to do. Pongo also was very happy to rest and stay still and let his body get better. Much more sensible than humans. Pongo sends big licks to Cooper and asks whether he can share the honey please?
Thanks Rosie....wish we could share the honey!! Cooper looooves it.....so that is one good thing. Am having trouble, though, with him "de-selecting" the cough pills....I put them in pill pockets but when he bites into the pocket he must notice something that shouldnt be there!!....Boy, they are too darn smart, aren't they??? Anyway, I grab it and ask him to eat it...he puts it in his mouth, then spits it out....so we go through this "eat" and "spit" a few times and he finally does swallow it....
We used to have a labrador step-dog.... he came round and stayed with us at the weekends. His real mum, Helen, simply couldn't get him to take tablets. She'd wrap it in bacon, bury it in cheese, hide it in kibble....no good, he'd find it every time and spit it out. When he stayed with us, he played all the time with Paul (my other half). Paul would show him the tablet and then pretend to eat it himself, winding the dog up into a frenzy..... "Ohhh... delicious.... oh yes..... no, you're not allowed any..... no, it's mine..... ooooh, it's so gooooooooood..... oh yummy yummy tablet....no, nothing for you doggie.... no, you can't have it, no no no......" The dog practically raped him for that tablet. Gone in one gulp. Helen could never figure out how we managed to get those tablets down him so easily. Probably just as well.
Molly had kennel cough at about 9 months of age. We had one horrendous night when she coughed and brought up phlegm practically non-stop, but then started to improve and it really only lasted about 5 days, so hope you'll be lucky and escape with a mild dose like this.
