To go... or not to go

It is my understanding the vaccine is only good for six months for kennel cough. So, even a vaccinated dog can pick it up unless it gets the vaccine a lot. I know lots of people who don't take their dogs in unless the cough is really bad and they seem to get over it fine, but since you have extenuating circumstances, I think I would go just to make sure. There is also a new form of an upper respiratory infection that sounds like kennel cough, but is much worse that has been showing up at some shelters in Indiana.

If the dog is around other dogs frequently, they need to be vaccinated every 6 months and then our vet said that it wasn't 100% effective... our dog got an upper respiratory infection last november. i thought it was kennel cough and let it sit for a few days (noticed it saturday, waited to see if he got better sunday and took him to the vet on monday) but he got pretty sick - high fever etc. it ended up costing a ton ($400.00) because by the time we took him in he needed to stay overnight, get fluids etc. It was bacterial so they gave him an antibiotic. I'm probably not the most neutral voice because of that experience ( i still see his sad puppy face - he slept propped up on the couch b/c of his congestion) but I would take him in. He wasn't "coughy" for more than a day or two before he got really really sick...

It was within the last 6 mo. We stay on top of it since we frequent the dog park. I had also read that like the human flu vaccine it only protects against certain strains. The first time I heard it was Sat. and honestly he's not doing it all day but I have heard it each day since Sat. We're going in at 10 because peace of mind is worth something and like I said I just need him to get healthy and stay that way...:) We'll let you know what they say.

Good luck and hopefully it is just allergies. Our dog was waaayyyy sick by this time - so hopefully Calvin doesn't have what Nigel had!!

They said its either a mild respitory thing or allergies and helped me figure out what to do for both. We also found out the spots on his chin which I've been ignoring thinking they'll go away are probably an allergy thing too and we need to get rid of the plastic water bowl and toys. That was interesting information so we'll see what all works.

Glad he's basically okay. Plastic food and water bowls can be irritating/toxic to both dogs and cats. A lot of cats who have feline acne have it clear up when switching to ceramic or metal bowls.

Just got a young lab mix dog last month from the Humane Society. Of course, she ended up with kennel cough. HSI had her on Doxycycline and said it was "preventative"... but I won't go into that. Regardless, Doxycycline is on Kroger's $4 prescription list. Get your baby checked out for the just in case. Mine responded very well to the Doxy. Good Luck!

Its funny because I have read about this before but its not something that crossed my mind at all until the vet mentioned it.

Hopefully it's kennel cough and not allergies. You'll get over kennel cough with time but hopefully it works on your time schedule. Congrats on getting married soon!