There are cases of the highly contagious, often fatal distemper disease occurring throughout the Phoenix Area. The Arizona Humane Society has reported an increase in the number of the cases of distemper as compared to previous years.  Typically distemper infections in dogs do increase in the spring due to an increase in the number of puppies that are typically born at that time. Signs of distemper are appearing much earlier this year and  cases have recently emerged as far away as Florida, Ohio and Georgia.

There is also evidence to suggest that two new strains of distemper virus indigenous to Europe have made their way in to the U.S.  The typical incubation period for distemper is one to two weeks; however the new strains may have an even longer incubation period. In addition, distemper was once thought of as a disease that primarily affected puppies which have not had all of their “puppy” shots. However, there is now evidence of older pets with unconfirmed vaccination histories becoming infected with the distemper virus.

This extremely contagious whole body viral disease is shed in bodily secretions of infected animals and spread via inhalation. Once inhaled, the virus moves to the lymph nodes where it begins reproducing. The virus then spreads to the blood and the cell lining of the respiratory, gastrointestinal, urogenital and central nervous system of infected animals. Symptoms vary from dog to dog, but often include: discharge from eyes/nose, coughing, lethargy, lack of appetite, callusing of nose/foot pads, vomiting, diarrhea and seizures.

Finlayson Animal Hospital routinely recommends vaccination for distemper for all dogs.  It is imperative that the all dog owners be diligent and make sure that their dogs have booster vaccinations regularly.  Puppies need a series of vaccinations until they are 5 months old. Dogs, two years old and older, with 2 previous vaccinations for distemper, need booster vaccinations no less than every 3 years. Distemper and the equally fatal parvovirus, are both a common problem in Phoenix and Maricopa County. People must be very careful when taking their pets to communal areas such as dog parks or other public areas with unknown dogs. Unvaccinated dogs are at high risk for contracting the disease. Currently, there is no specific treatment or cure for the distemper virus nor is there a fool-proof test to confirm or deny the diagnosis.

For dogs suspected of having distemper, it is imperative that they be checked immediately at our office and isolated from other dogs within the home. In the event your pet is diagnosed with the distemper virus a thorough cleaning of your home with disinfectant is necessary
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Finlayson Animal Hospital is taking every precautionary measure available to ensure the health of the animals in our care and of our patients. To that end, Dr. Finlayson is recommending in the face of this threat, a Distemper vaccination every 12 months on all dogs.  Our office will attempt to contact all our clients with a dog and let them know if a booster vaccination is needed. If you have any questions please call our office. The Arizona Humane Society has done a lot of the work in identifying this new threat to the dogs in our area.  I am sure that in the future, the vaccine that we use will be changed to provide protection against these new virus strains. Until that happens we all will need to be very diligent in how we care for our dogs and where we let them go and what dogs they associate with.

Dr. Finlayson