Distemper in Dogs – Causes, Symptoms, & Treatment

Distemper in Dogs – Causes, Symptoms, & Treatment

 Distemper is one of the foremost serious diseases your dog can get. it's also one among the foremost preventable. Here are the facts, symptoms, treatment options, and prevention methods that each dog owner must realize distemper.

-What Is Canine Distemper?

Canine distemper should sound familiar to you if your dog is up-to-date on his vaccinations. Veterinarians consider the distemper vaccine to be a core vaccination, alongside the parvovirus, canine adenovirus, and rabies vaccines.

The disease is very contagious and potentially lethal. A paramyxovirus causes distemper in dogs, and it's closely associated with the measles and rinderpest viruses. It causes severe illness within the host by attacking multiple body systems, leading to a widespread infection that's difficult to treat.

-How Is distemper Spread?

There are 3 ways dogs can get canine distemper:

-Through direct contact with an infected animal or object

-Through airborne exposure

-Through the placenta

Canine distemper is spread through direct contact or airborne exposure, rather just like the cold in humans. When an infected dog or wild animal coughs, sneezes, or barks, he releases aerosol droplets into the environment, infecting nearby animals and surfaces, like food and water bowls.

The good news is that the virus doesn't last long within the environment and may be destroyed by most disinfectants. The bad news is that distemper-infected dogs can shed the virus for up to many months, putting dogs around them in danger.

Dogs aren't the sole animals which will get distemper. Wild animals like raccoons, foxes, wolves, coyotes, skunks, ferrets, and mink also can get distemper. this suggests that an epidemic of distemper within the local wildlife population can put dogs in danger of catching the disease albeit they are doing not inherit contact with other dogs.

Bitches also can spread the virus through the placenta to their puppies, which is one of the explanations why it's important to completely vaccinate any dog you propose to breed.

-What Are the Symptoms of Canine Distemper?

Distemper dogs experience a good range of symptoms counting on how advanced the disease is in their bodies. Once a dog becomes infected, the virus initially replicates within the lymphoid tissue of the track before moving on to infect the remainder of the dog’s lymphoid tissue, the tract, the alimentary canal, the urogenital epithelium, the central systema nervosum, and optic nerves. This leads to two stages of symptoms.

Stage One:

The first symptom of distemper in dogs is typically watery to pus-like discharge from his eyes, followed by fever, loss of appetite, and clear nasal discharge. Most dogs develop a fever approximately 3-to-6 days after being infected, but the initial symptoms depend upon the severity of the case and the way the patient reacts thereto. generally, the symptoms related to distemper in dogs during the primary stages of infection are:

• Fever
• Clear nasal discharge
• Purulent eye discharge
• Lethargy
• Anorexia
• Coughing
• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Pustular dermatitis (rarely)
• Inflammation of the brain and medulla spinalis

If a dog infected with distemper survives the acute stage of the illness, he can also develop hyperkeratosis of the paw pads and nose, which provides distemper the nickname “hard pad disease.” This distemper symptom causes the pads of a dog’s feet to harden and enlarge and is uncomfortable.

One of the opposite risks related to distemper in dogs may be a secondary bacterial infection that attacks when a dog’s system is compromised by the distemper virus. Secondary bacterial infections can cause respiratory and GI symptoms, including:

• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Difficulty breathing
• Change in the rate of respiration
• Pneumonia

Stage Two:

Some dogs develop neurological signs because the disease progresses and attacks the central systema nervosum. These signs are particularly disturbing for owners.

• Head tilt
• Circling
• Partial or full paralysis
• Seizures
• Nystagmus (repetitive eye movements)
• Muscle twitching
• Convulsions with increased salivation and chewing motions
• Death

Distemper in dogs presents with some or all of those symptoms, counting on the severity of the case. consistent with the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), “distemper is usually fatal, and dogs that survive usually have permanent, irreparable systema nervosum damage.”

Distemper in Dogs

-What Dogs Are Most in danger for Distemper?

Distemper may be a risk to all or any dogs, but unvaccinated dogs and puppies under four months old are particularly vulnerable to distemper. If your puppy shows any symptoms of distemper, call your vet immediately.

-How to Treat distemper:

There is no cure for distemper. Veterinarians diagnose distemper through a mixture of clinical signs and diagnostic tests, or a postmortem necropsy. Once diagnosed, care is only supportive. Veterinarians treat diarrhea, vomiting, and neurological symptoms, prevent dehydration and check out to stop secondary infections. Most vets recommend that dogs be hospitalized and separated from other dogs to stop the spread of infection.

The survival rate and length of infection depend upon the strain of the virus and on the strength of the dog’s system. Some cases resolve as quickly as 10 days. Other cases may exhibit neurological symptoms for weeks and even months afterward.

-Preventing distemper:

Canine distemper is entirely preventable. There are several belongings you can do to stop distemper in dogs:

• Make sure your puppy gets the complete series of distemper vaccinations
• Keep distemper vaccinations up-to-date throughout your dog’s life and avoid any gaps in vaccinations
• Keep your dog far away from infected animals and wildlife
• Vaccinate pet ferrets for distemper
• Be careful socializing your puppy or unvaccinated dog, especially in areas where dogs congregate, like dog parks, classes, and doggy daycare

By following these steps, you'll keep your dog safe from distemper. If you've got more questions on distemper in dogs, ask your veterinarian, and call your vet immediately if you think your dog could be showing symptoms of distemper.