Is kennel cough contagious to humans? Experts say that it is a rare case. In other words, you can still develop the symptoms under certain circumstances. This respiratory disease can still be transferred from animals to humans.
Kennel Cough – What Is It?
Generally speaking, kennel cough is a contagious respiratory disease. Being known with its other name, infectious tracheobronchitis, kennel cough can be caused by both virus and bacteria. The disease mainly affects the lungs, voice box, and windpipe of dogs. One of the most common bacteria that is known to cause kennel cough is Bordetella bronchiseptica. Studies show that this kind of bacteria is often linked to one of the causes of cough in humans. The combination of Bordatella and certain viruses like canine influenza and canine distemper is often blamed to cause this respiratory disease. These viruses are known to affect cells in the respiratory tract, weakening the immune system. As the name suggests, kennel cough is found in dogs. But researches show that the disease is also often found in other animals such as rabbits, guinea pigs, cats, mice, and horses. Is kennel cough contagious to humans because it involves Bordetella? Yes! This rare circumstance is often found in people with immune system issues. This respiratory disease is sometimes found to develop in people with HIV and lung cancer.
What are the Symptoms?
Kennel cough mainly shows different symptoms in dogs and humans. Some common symptoms of kennel cough in dogs are a loud and hacking cough that sounds like “honking”, a runny nose, sneezing, low fever, lethargy, and loss of appetite. Most of the time, dogs will recover from the symptoms in about three to six weeks. Meanwhile, people who are infected by cough kennel often develop symptoms like a persistent cough, difficulty to swallow, sore throat, fever, shortness of breath, and other respiratory symptoms.
How to Treat Kennel Cough
Treatments given to kennel cough in dogs and humans depends on several factors. These include the severity of the infection, medical conditions, overall health, and age. When treating dogs with kennel cough, vets will use antibiotics, cough medicines, and nebulizers or vaporizers. Depending on the symptoms, there are some treatments recommended by doctors. Most of the time, they will be given antibiotics and cough suppressants. However, keep in mind to avoid using steroids in treating kennel cough since it can weaken your immune system. Consult medical experts or find information on the internet can be a great way to find if is kennel cough contagious to humans or not.
