Dog Flu Treatment

Like the human flu, the dog flu is a virus that affects the body’s immune system and becomes symptomatic until it is destroyed by antibodies. Most dogs develop the antibodies needed to defend against the dog flu within a few weeks. It generally takes 2-4 weeks for your dog to fully recover from the dog flu, but luckily most of the symptoms are nowhere near as nasty as they are for humans. Also, humans have an extremely low risk of contracting the illness from dogs, so you shouldn’t worry about the dog flu affecting you or your family. Thankfully, it is nothing like the avian bird flu, although it is better to be safe than sorry.

The symptoms of the dog flu are a runny nose and persistent cough that lasts for 10 days to a month or so. Your dog will probably get the virus if it is around other dogs that have it, the same as with the human version of the flu. The best way to prevent it is by keeping your dog away from other dogs that might be sick. However, as you can imagine this can be tough to do if you don’t know that other dogs are sick.

If you think your dog has the dog flu, then your vet can do a blood test to determine whether or not he has the virus. The antibody count in the blood should show whether or not your dog has it. Generally your dog will be immune for 2 years after recovering, which is a better immunity than humans have. Although the dog flu is rarely fatal, there are some cases where it can be.

The best way to treat the dog flu is by getting a medication from your veterinarian. The most common medication is called Tamiflu and treats the symptoms more than anything. Since the virus affects the respiratory system the most, these medicines are made to clear up problems in the lungs and airways to prevent infection and the development of pneumonia. Once the symptoms are gone, then your dog should be near full recovery.

Your veterinarian will probably recommend cool water baths as well, to keep your dog’s skin clean of the virus and infection. The most important thing is to keep your dog from getting pneumonia, so you might need a series of treatments and medications. The good thing about the dog flu is that it is fairly easy to treat and is rarely deadly. The bad part about it is that it last a month, so your dog will probably get very frustrated with the cough and from eating pills. If you have any questions about the dog flu, then you should contact your veterinarian to get the most relevant information.