My puppy has kennel cough. Should I clean her toys and bedding?

It is pretty likely that after Mila has gone through the course of kennel cough she is naturally immune to all these bacteria and viruses involved for quite a while. So you do not need to worry about her being reexposed. The antibiotic will kill the bacteria that are involved and may opportunistically superinfect your dog. Again once she has finished the course there is likely no chance she gets reinfected from residual bacteria in her environment. So you do not have to worry, just do not expose other dogs to her environment or let her come in contact with other dogs as kennel cough is very contagious.

There are a few reports of Bordetella bacteria affecting severely immunocompromised people, but the other viruses cannot affect people. I typically recommend moderate exercise restriction until the cough improves. The virus and bacteria are not very hardy in the environment, and direct contact is necessary for spread. Routine cleaning should be fine.

Kennel cough is an upper respiratory disease that is caused by various bacteria and viruses, The most well known one would be Bordetella sp. Kennel cough is a self limiting disease and will go away within 4 weeks even without treatment, We only treat the animal if it has a fever, or if the cough gets so bad that it is coughing almost all the time, or if there is a purulent discharge. You do not need to do anything. Should your dog start coughing constantly or get lethargic or have a purulent discharge, you should take it either to your vet for an exam and cough medicine and antibiotics as needed or to a PetER if your vet is not open. But if your dog is happy and other than coughing occasionally appears not bothered by it, you can wait it out.

Kennel cough is usually a self limiting infection and in 1 to 2 weeks time will completely disappear without any treatment. However sometime an anti inflammatory medication and an antibiotic treatment is indicated (and probably this was your case). Your puppy should gradually improve but if you do not see an improvement in the next 24-36 hrs I recommend a recheck at your veterinarian, earlier if she is getting worse. In the meantime I suggest to use a harness instead of a collar to walk her outside to avoid pushing on the inflamed trachea and make her cough even more. Good and post again if you would like further advices. I hope this answer was helpful.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Kennel cough is usually self limiting with in 2 weeks and stops being contagious once the cough resolves. Make sure all bedding and clothing used to handle the mother is cleaned. It might be ideal to dedicate one room in your house for her to deliver that she currently doesn't have access to. That way it is free of kennel cough. Hopefully she will have stopped coughing by her due date. Good luck!

I'm sorry Krystal has kennel cough. Have her see a vet, who can prescribe her medications to help with her symptoms. Any dog with kennel cough should be isolated for at least two weeks, possibly longer depending on the severity of the infection. Keep her in a well-humidified area, and use a harness instead of a collar to minimize coughing. Rest her for at least seven days to minimize irritation of the airways caused by excessive coughing. You can bring her into the bathroom with you while you have a shower, as the steam may help with the respiratory irritation. I hope this helps!

You can give honey if you wish to try and soothe your dog's throat if he has kennel cough - it can sometimes help a little, and won't hurt anything. Normally, kennel cough causes relatively mild symptoms and resolves on its own within a week or two, but in rare cases it can progress to pneumonia or other serious problems. If your dog is not eating, acting lethargic, or coughing so much that he has trouble resting or sleeping, then I would recommend having him examined by a vet - he may need antibiotics and prescription cough suppressants to help resolve the infection more quickly and make him more comfortable.