SAN ANTONIO – City of San Antonio Animal Care Services officials say rates of a highly contagious and potentially deadly disease are on the rise in local dogs.
ACS spokeswoman Lisa Norwood told KSAT Wednesday that rates of a disease known as canine distemper are currently higher than normal.
“Distemper is something that’s always in the community, unfortunately, because San Antonio historically has a low vaccination rate for pets. We see it year-round and it’s a real problem for shelters due to the large numbers of animals,” Norwood told KSAT.
According to ACS, canine distemper is spread by airborne exposure to the virus in the respiratory secretions of infected dogs.
Signs of canine distemper include eye discharge, fever, nasal discharge, coughing, reduced appetite, diarrhea, and vomiting.
As the disease progresses, infected dogs could develop seizures, twitching, or paralysis. If a pet survives, these neurological signs can last for their lifetime, ACS officials said.
While rabies vaccines are required by law for pets, canine distemper vaccines are not.
“Many people won’t pay the extra money to get the vaccine for their dogs. Thing is, distemper shots are relatively inexpensive and there is no cure for this incredibly virulent disease,” Norwood said. “Vaccines provide the only measure of protection.”
The American Veterinary Medical Association website states that all dogs are at risk but puppies younger than four months old and dogs that have not been vaccinated against canine distemper are at increased risk of acquiring the disease.
ACS officials said there are no medications that will kill the virus in already-infected dogs and puppies and that giving the vaccine to a dog that is already infected will not help the animal recover any quicker.
Norwood told KSAT that ACS and the Animal Defense League host twice-monthly community vaccination clinics for San Antonio residents. Dates and locations for the clinics can be found at adltexas.org.