Following a vaccine schedule is crucial to your dog's health. Vaccines can protect your dog from many common and deadly contagious illnesses, such as rabies and distemper. Following a vaccine schedule can ensure that your dog remains protected throughout his life. Many vaccines, including the one for dog kennel cough, require boosters on a regular basis.
What Kennel Cough Is and What Causes It
Kennel cough, or infectious tracheobronchitis, is a contagious disease that can cause your dog to cough for up to three weeks. Kennel cough causes a hacking, dry cough, but it is rarely life threatening. Nevertheless, it can cause your dog quite a lot of discomfort.
Kennel cough occurs due to infection with any one of several pathogens, and can sometimes occur due to infection with more than one of these simultaneously. These pathogens include the bacteria Bordetella bronchiceptica as well as adenoviruses and parainfluenza viruses. They can cause persistent coughing symptoms, loss of fever and appetite, though most dogs recover without medical intervention.
Assessing Your Dog's Risk for Kennel Cough
The vaccine against kennel cough is not considered a core, or necessary, vaccine. Core vaccines are intended to prevent serious, life-threatening infections, and they include vaccinations against rabies, distemper and parvovirus. Because the kennel cough vaccine is considered optional, any dog that comes into contact with a large group of other dogs is at risk for contracting kennel cough.
Most dogs catch kennel cough when they are boarded at a veterinary facility or kennel. Show dogs are vulnerable to this illness, since they often come into contact with many other dogs. Dogs that have a lot of social contact with unfamiliar dogs are also at risk.
If you have a show dog, or you know your dog will be spending a lot of time with other dogs in a boarding facility or other setting, vaccination against kennel cough is wise. Geriatric dogs, especially those with respiratory disorders or compromised immunity, should be vaccinated, since kennel cough can become a serious illness in these animals.
Vaccinating Puppies and Dogs against Dog Kennel Cough
Puppies should begin to receive their first vaccinations at six to eight weeks of age. At this time, your puppy will receive core vaccinations for distemper and parvovirus. The kennel cough vaccine is not considered a core vaccine, but your puppy should receive it at this time anyway, especially if he will be spending time in the company of other dogs that may not have received the vaccine.
Your puppy should receive a kennel cough booster vaccination at the age of 10 to 12 weeks. He should receive a second booster at the age of one year. Your puppy should continue to receive a kennel cough booster every year for the rest of his life. You should be advised that your puppy will not begin to enjoy full immunity from kennel cough for 72 hours to two weeks following his initial inoculation.