Dog Flu

I am too cute for my own good.

Hi all, Lily the Corgi here.  How has your week been?  We've had a little weirdness here this past week...but, isn't that the normal for life around here?  This week, we got a new foster dog named Popcorn.  Popcorn was a nice enough guy, but he was big and very energetic and he really scared Sadie.  I mean scared her to the point she was trembling, hiding, peeing in the floor.  Lucy and I tried to protect Sadie by growling and snapping at Popcorn the foster dog to keep him at a distance.  Since Sadie has poorly controlled diabetes already, mama was afraid the stress would cause her to become very ill, so Popcorn had to leave.  I know I've made snide comments about the fosters, but I was once a foster myself and I know how important it is to have foster homes for these homeless doggies.  Popcorn is safe at the rescue, but at our house, we're taking a break from fostering for Sadie's sake.  

Mama is very upset that we are having to stop fostering for a while; she says dogs may die because we don't give them a place to go, but that Sadie has to be her first priority.  Folks, if you can find it in your hearts to foster...and if your doggies don't get so upset they become ill like Sadie...please, please consider fostering.  Okay, that's my public service announcement for the day.

Sadie is not the most stable dog in the universe, but we love her.

So, anyway, today I wanted to talk to you about something pretty serious.  It seems in some parts of the country, canine influenza is becoming quite widespread.  Many dogs, including my sisters and me, had our flu shots, but we are being told this outbreak is of a different strain than the one covered by the vaccines.  A lot of dogs in the Chicago area have become very sick from this new dog flu; vets and pet parents are afraid that flu is going to spread far and wide since no one has a vaccine for it.  

In the interests of stopping, or at least slowing, the spread of this doggy illness, some basic precautions are recommended:

1.  Vaccinate your dog.  This will protect your dog from one of the flu strains and afford as much protection as possible.  

2.  Avoid social situations like dog parks and kennels, doggy day car and corgi meet-ups (GASP!)   Also avoid taking your dog to places like Petsmart, Petco, etc...where your dog can come in contact with items an infected dog might have encountered, and by encountered I mean sneezed on, peed on, and slobbered on.  Anywhere your dog interacts with other dogs is a place where flu can be passed.  Remember, an infected dog doesn't have to appear sick to pass on the disease.

3.  If you humans come in contact with other dogs, wash your hands, clothes or any object that comes in contact with the other dogs.  You could be the carrier of the flu germs (and besides, it really ticks off your dog when you come home smelling of foreign dogs!)

4.  Speak with your vet about any questions or concerns you may have.

I've never been to Chicago, but our former foster dog Linus lives there now.  I hope he's okay.  I live in a small town just outside a small city so we aren't as worried about infection as big city critters might be, but one can never be too careful!  This flu can surely make dogs sick; a doggy who is not in good health to start with runs a risk of having the flu turn into pneumonia which is potentially fatal.  Use your good judgement to protect yourselves from this flu.

That's all I've got for now.  My mama is starting a stay-at-home job tomorrow where she will need to talk on the phone and on the computer part of the day.  She says we need to be quiet while she's working.  Okay, mama, I'll try, but I make NO promises if a squirrel happens to romp across the fence.

Take care of each other and remember to cover when you sneeze--I recommend burying your snout in a pile of fresh laundry to catch any flying snot.

Til next time,

Love ya,

Lily the Corgi

Here I am getting some much deserved attention at the dog park.  I may not be going to the dog park for a while, at least until the threat of the doggy flu has passed.   SIGH

Information for this post taken from the websites of the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMC).