- Hi Jeff -
- I assume they are discussing H3N8 the
flu that jumped from horses to dogs.
-
- Patty
-
- ProMed Mail
- CBS News
- 3-25-6
-
- One of 3 cases of highly contagious dog
flu confirmed by a lab at the University of California, Davis, (UC Davis)
was found in a San Francisco puppy, veterinary researchers announced Friday.
-
- A lab at UC Davis detected canine influenza
virus in dogs from 3 states using a new test that employs DNA technology
to provide rapid, accurate diagnosis of the highly-contagious disease.
-
- Since November 2005, scientists have
tested more than 100 samples from dogs suspected of having canine influenza.
All of the samples turned out to be negative until 23 Feb 2006, when the
first of the 3 positive samples was diagnosed.
-
- That first case involved a fatal outbreak
of disease in a Colorado animal shelter. It was followed by a case in San
Francisco, in which an imported puppy became ill but recovered, as did
its household-mates.
-
- The 3rd case involved a fatal outbreak
in a Florida animal shelter.
-
- "There is no reason for dog owners
to panic over the confirmation of these cases," said Christian Leutenegger
of the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. "Any dog that exhibits
upper respiratory symptoms, such as a persistent cough or nasal discharge,
should be routinely examined by a local veterinarian."
-
- Dog flu is an upper respiratory disease,
first reported in January 2004 in racing greyhounds at a Florida racetrack.
-
- To date, antibodies to canine influenza
virus have been detected in dogs in animal shelters, adoption groups, pet
stores, boarding kennels and veterinary clinics in 19 states.
-
- Dogs can also catch the virus from saliva
or mucus on shared toys or food dishes.
-
- There is no evidence that canine influenza
can be passed to humans, according to UC Davis researchers.
-
- Since the dog flu virus is just emerging,
dogs have no natural immunity to it, researchers say. They add that all
dogs exposed will become infected, and roughly 80 percent of infected dogs
will develop symptoms of the illness. About 5 to 8 percent of all infected
dogs will die, according to UC Davis researchers.
-
- There is currently no vaccine available
for canine influenza.
-
- http://cbs13.com/local/local_story_084112807.html
-
- ProMED-mail
- promed@promedmail.org
-
- It should be noted that this disease
is only fatal to a small percentage of those canines infected. Hopefully,
a vaccine will be developed soon. However, it is likely that where numbers
of dogs are gathered, such as in animal shelters, we may see numbers of
those animals affected by this virus. - Mod.TG
-
- Patricia A. Doyle, DVM, PhD
- Bus Admin, Tropical Agricultural Economics
- Univ of West Indies
-
- Please visit my "Emerging Diseases"
message board at:
- http://www.emergingdisease.org/phpbb/index.php
- Also my new website: http://drpdoyle.tripod.com/
- Zhan le Devlesa tai sastimasa
- Go with God and in Good Health
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