Dog Flu- should I worry? – Memphis Pet Health
Whether from a recent news cast or the front page of the newspaper, we know most of you have heard about the Canine Influenza also known as the ‘Dog Flu’ outbreak in the Midwest United States and specifically in the Chicago area.
We have heard your cries for more information, and we wanted you to have the most current and accurate information available. Dr. David Wright of The Pet Hospitals-Collierville has thoroughly researched to bring us the quick facts:
- This is a new strain of dog flu known as the H3N2 strain which has not been previously detected in North America.
- The good news is the current outbreak has been confined to the Chicago area thus far and cases have not been reported in the Memphis area or in Tennessee.
- There is a vaccine available for canine influenza but, not for this particular strain. The commercially available vaccine is for the H3N8 strain.
- Unfortunately, it is not known if the commercially available vaccine will provide any protection for this new strain. Research is currently underway to verify whether vaccine will protect against this new strain.
- The vaccine is in extremely short supply and temporarily unavailable.
Image courtesy of ShutterStock
Since there are no current cases in the greater Memphis area and the vaccine for the H3N8 is currently unavailable, we are currently not recommending that you have your dog vaccinated.
Rest assured we are keeping tabs on the situation and as information changes we will keep you up to date of our recommendations to avoid dog flu.
As always, your pet’s health is our top priority; Please call one of our doctors if you have any additional questions.
Thanks for your trust in us! Check back here for further updates or we can be reached at 1(901)853-7330!
