CALIFORNIA, USA — A mystery respiratory illness affecting dogs has made its way to California. Over the past couple weeks, Los Angeles County has seen 10 reported cases, according to the Department of Public Health.
The symptoms include cough, sneezing, nasal discharge and lack of energy or appetite. Veterinarians said it's important to get your dog looked at sooner rather than later to keep it from developing into pneumonia.
UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine professor Karl Jandrey said the illness has been brewing for the last year across the country. He said the illness is transmitted from dog to dog through the air and close contact.
"For instance, in a shelter situation, doggy daycare, SPCA, veterinary hospital, dog park where dogs have a lot of nose-to-nose respiratory secretion involvement and exchange. Those are the likely chances of transmission," he said.
Jandrey said the symptoms are similar to other respiratory illnesses in dogs, like kennel cough.
UC Davis and other local vets ABC10 contacted haven't seen any cases of the mystery illness yet, but if your dog experiences breathing issues, contact your vet and isolate sick dogs.
You can protect your dog by avoiding places where your pet could have close interaction with other dogs, such as doggy daycare and dog parks. Also, keep them away from dogs that have had any respiratory illnesses.
Jandrey said as far as they know, the illness has not been seen in other types of pets, only dogs.
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