Kennel Cough
(Infectious Tracheobronchitis)

Kennel cough is the most common complaint I see associated with petshop puppies.  The petstore often tells customers that a puppy just has a cold, or the sniffles, and it is no different than children and the common cold.  

Kennel cough is caused by a combination of viruses and bacteria.  The viruses do not respond to antibiotics and the bacteria is normally resistant to many antibiotics which are approved for young puppies.  This makes treating puppies very difficult and most customers report that it takes up to a month or more until the cough is completely gone.  

Kennel cough in healthy adult dogs is usually not a threat and will run its course like the common cold.  In a puppy that is seldom the case.  Adult dogs fight illness through natural antibodies but puppies either have not yet developed the antibodies to fight off illness, or those antibodies are so taxed because of the severe stress puppies in petshops go through in the first eight weeks of life.  A petshop puppies has normally changed hands four times in its short life.  From the breeder; to the broker; to the petshop; to you.  At the broker and petshop the puppy is exposed to hundreds, even thousands, of other puppies.

Your puppy has probably been vaccinated at least four times for the common viruses and bacteria that cause kennel cough.  The "better safe that sorry" approach of over-vaccinating puppies in the wholesale industry normally results in the broker, the petshop and often your own vet, assuming that no one has vaccinated a puppy before they see it.  Brokers normally vaccinate puppies upon arrival at their facilities.  Many petshop also vaccinate puppies when they arrive from the broker.  You vet may recommend vaccinations again because of the high number of cases of kennel cough that he sees from petshops.

Short nosed breeds, like Pugs, Bulldogs, French Bulldogs, Shih Tzu, etc. are most susceptible to kennel cough and complications from kennel cough.  Quite simply, these breeds have a shorter path from the nose to the lungs.  Inside a puppy's nasal passage are tiny follicles that attract and trap the bad things that your puppy breathes in.  Short nose breeds have fewer of these follicles and the bad things have much more opportunity to find their way to the lungs.

If you puppy has been diagnosed with kennel cough, follow your vet's advice carefully and don't hesitate to contact him if you feel the puppy is not getting better, or is getting worse.  Make sure you understand your warranty from the petshop and your state's puppy lemon laws, if any such laws exist.  A petshop may refuse to cover treatment but in most cases they are required to under warranty and/or lemon laws.  Contact the petshop that you bought your puppy and find out the protocol should your puppy "crash" after hours.  Most petshops will not cover emergency care, so make sure you know what to do in the event of an emergency.  

The important thing to remember is that although kennel cough is common in petshop puppies, it is not acceptable and you should not be led to believe that it is.  Hundreds of thousands of puppies sell every year in the U.S. that do not have kennel cough.  It is the dog industry itself and the mass production of puppies that causes so many cases of kennel cough in petshop puppies.

I hope that some day in the near future we will see a class action law suit initiated against petshops for selling puppies suffering from kennel cough.  Kennel cough has approximately a seven day incubation period and most petshops only allow 24-72 hours to have your puppy seen by a vet.  My advice is to wait until the latest possible time under the warranty to have your puppy's first check up (unless of course you have any concerns about your puppy's health before then).  Under no circumstances should you give your puppy any medications that the petshop sends home with you unless it is in a prescription bottle from a veterinarian.  I am aware of some petshops that routinely send home cough suppressants and antibiotics that will mask the signs of kennel cough until after the warranty period has passed.