Adenovirus is a highly contagious respiratory virus that spreads from dogs breathing in contaminated air. It’s most common when dogs are coughing near one another. It can also be spread through contained feces or liquids smelt, or eaten by another dog. Canine Adenovirus has two types: CAV-1 and CAV-2. CAV-1, that attacks multiple systems within the body causing inflammation of blood vessels, and sends the liver into an acute toxic shock. CAV-2 attacks the upper respiratory tract and tends to remain there. CAV-1 has no antiviral treatment, similar to other core viruses. CAV-1 has no antiviral treatment and we can only do our best to alleviate discomfort. Due to the aggressiveness of a multisystem attack, CAV-1 is considered more serious than CAV-2.
Here is where things get a little confusing.
In America, dog owners are recommended to vaccinate their domesticated dogs for Canine Adenovirus Type 2. Now, after all we just discussed on the aggressiveness of CAV-1, why would we vaccinate for CAV-2? Originally, we did! Domesticated dogs were vaccinated with a live of CAV-1. Although this vaccine was extremely effective, overtime, we began to see too many cases of adverse side effects. Side effects include conditions like, “corneal edema,” or blue eye, causing visual impairment. Due to the aggressiveness of CAV-1, even with a weakened virus, it was still too aggressive. With these side effects becoming common, the pharmaceutical community developed a vaccine for CAV-2. CAV-1 and CAV-2 are both “serotypes,” which are different strains of a virus within the family. This is why vaccinating for CAV-2 provides protection against CAV-1 as well. While a kennel cough may not seem fatal enough for a vaccine, if a dog does contract CAV-1 without any protection, it can be fatal, and you should seek medical attention right away.
Symptoms of CAV in Canines are:
CAV-1 → CAN VARY: lethargy, loss of appetite, vomiting, fever and diarrhea.
CAV-2 → dry cough or coughing up white foam, gagging, nasal discharge and sometimes conjunctivitis.
It’s important to vaccinate your puppies because vaccines cannot be used once a disease has entered the body. Sadly, in many cases, there is no cure. Puppies will typically get a series of three shots given at eight weeks, 12 weeks and 16-20 weeks old. After the first vaccination series, dogs are revaccinated again after six months, typically at one year of age. As mentioned in the earlier articles, Wise Woofs revaccinates after six months of age because their immune system is developed and can now create a more sustained response to viruses from vaccines. More recent studies show immunity lasting up to five years, however, due to lack of data, it is still recommended to revaccinate every three years. One option mentioned in other core vaccines prior to revaccination is a titer test. Titer test is a blood test that can determine the amount of present antibodies we have against a particular disease or virus. To read more about Titer Testing check out our article in this section.
