# Bordatello



## Emily1970 (Apr 21, 2011)

Riley is 7 months old and has had all his vaccinations. We take him to the dog park and day care once in awhile. I didn't realize he could still get kennel cough. He is very ill right now, but of course with his treatment I am sure he will get better. Has anyone else had problems with it? Riley coughs so hard he can't keep anything down. But he still wants to play!!


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## redrover (Mar 17, 2011)

Poor boy! Luckily kennel cough can be managed--like an upper respiratory infection in humans. Jasper had something that resembled kennel cough when he was a puppy--it didn't last long, the vet wasn't positive, etc. etc. But the dog in an upstairs unit in my building had it, and the timing was just right, so...

The bordetella vaccine is apparently only effective in 70% of dogs, and is usually only considered "current" if it was received in the last 6 months (which is why a boarding kennel might request that your dog get another bordetella shot even if he got one earlier in the year). A dog should get the injectable vaccine at least a week before going to a boarding facility, so that there's enough time for the immune system to properly respond. I think with the intranasal one there's usually a 48-hr wait.

If his cough is really problematic (for example, keeping both of you awake at night) you can get cough suppressants from your vet. If the coughing is causing him to vomit, they might be necessary. They might also prescribe antibiotics, but I guess there's some debate as to how effective they actually are? I'm not sure. I was just told to keep an eye on Jasper for any change in behavior/appetite, and if the cough got worse or lasted longer than 10 days to bring him back in for meds. Poor Riley--I hope he feels better soon!!


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## sarahaf (Aug 17, 2009)

Poor thing. The only thing I've read about it is that it's generally easily treated, so I'm guessing the antibiotic will work. But I would second the suggestion to check with the vet about the vomiting (if the vet isn't already aware of that), or of course, if the cough isn't getting better after you give the antibiotic a chance to work.


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## Emily1970 (Apr 21, 2011)

His cough was actually so bad that he vomited 40 times in less than 24 hours. Foam, bile, everything. The vet didn't want to give him an antibiotic unless he doesn't improve within a few days. They gave him tussigan/hydrocodone to take every 12 hours for a week. I guess the vaccine is like the flu shot. There are different strains of bordatello and so they can still get it. I called the day care facility and they were nice about it. If he doesn't improve within a few days, there will be xrays, bloodwork and a hospital stay in Riley's future, but I am hoping since he is so young, he will bounce back quickly. But of course he can't go anywhere for 14 days. They even made us wait in the car until they had a room ready.


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## Emily1970 (Apr 21, 2011)

Update on Riley. We had to rush him back in. He had a high fever and had developed pneumonia. He is a very sick little guy.


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## datacan (May 15, 2011)

WOW, hope Riley will weather this flu fast :'(


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## JillandDan (Sep 8, 2010)

Aw. Poor Riley.


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## mswhipple (Mar 7, 2011)

Awwww... Poor little guy! Emily1970, please keep us posted. We want to hear that Riley is getting better real soon!! Poor pup! And one really sad part of a sick dog is that they don't understand what's wrong, and it's hard to comfort them when they're that sick. They are so innocent.


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## Emily1970 (Apr 21, 2011)

We are into our second week of the illness. Thank goodness I recognized his downturn when I got home from work and didn't wait til his vet appointment the next day. His temperature was 105 and he was vomiting constantly. He has to take the tussigan/hydrocodone 4x per day which can go down to 3x a day tomorrow, Augmentin 375mg twice a day, and Rimadyl twice a day. His throat got infected from all the irritation too. He is slowly getting better, but I can tell when it is time for the cough meds because he starts coughing a lot and gagging. The meds are hard on his belly so he is really gassy too. The vet said he can have a bordatello booster in a month. The vet has been great. He calls us at home every other day to check on him.


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## mswhipple (Mar 7, 2011)

Thank you for the update. So glad to know that it is being taken seriously and treated aggressively! Keep us posted, please.


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## Emily1970 (Apr 21, 2011)

Thanks! What is really hard right now is just like when we are sick, sometimes he feels ok and doesn't understand why he can't go out and play hard. We were instructed to only take him out to potty. No leash walks, no nothing. So he is getting hard to contain in the house. I guess that is a good sign though.


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## Emily1970 (Apr 21, 2011)

Another update. Riley has to be on all of those meds another full 7 days. :-[


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## Marty (Jul 21, 2014)

We are going through this difficult time also. So I feel for you and know exactly what your going through.
Our dog Tanner also has phenomena. He is constantly throwing up bile and cannot keep any food down. The vet gave him medication, Zeniquin( once daily) and Apo-Amoxi/Clav( 1 tablet every 12 hours). He also has POLYMYOPATHY. I'm not sure if this could be the cause of the phenomena. He does not want to take the medication. We have mashed the pills up and put into liquified food, but he will not take it. All he wants to do is drink water, but then he throws it up. I'm at a lose as to what to do. We don't have a lot of money to be spending thousands of dollars. Difficult time indeed.


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