By Matlin Smith

Current-Argus Staff Writer

CARLSBAD — several cases of a sometimes fatal, highly contagious virus have been cropping up recently in Carlsbad pets, one local veterinarian said Thursday.

Canine Distemper is a viral disease that is spread through the respiratory system and is especially prevalent in puppies, said Carlsbad Animal Care Center veterinarian Dr. Robin Sankey.

Symptoms of the disease usually begin with a fever and can progress from severe cough, runny nose, lack of appetite, diarrhea and dental disease up to seizures and other neurological problems that could last the remainder of the dog’s life.

“In my experience, most dogs that have progressed to seizures have died,” Sankey said.

Distemper can take between two weeks and three months after infection for the dog to make a full recovery or succumb to the virus if they didn’t receive proper vaccination early.

Sankey said the best way to prevent the 50 percent deadly disease is to vaccinate puppies when their maternal antibodies are wearing off, when they are between six and eight weeks old.

however, one initial vaccination will not prevent the disease, and as the protective antibodies wear off, puppies will require a series of vaccinations to ensure they don’t contract the virus.

If a dog has not been vaccinated and develops symptoms, Sankey said testing for the virus is difficult and takes several days to receive results.

“If a dog has distemper, you can’t vaccinate it to prevent the virus from getting worse, you just have to treat the secondary symptoms and let it run its course. some fully recover, but a lot die,” she said.

Older dogs are also highly susceptible to contracting distemper and should also be examined and properly vaccinated.

Sankey said unlike parvovirus and rabies, distemper cannot affect humans who come in contact with an infected dog.

ST. PAULS — the Robeson County Animal Shelter is imposing a 14-day quarantine because a dog at the facility was confirmed to have distemper, a highly contagious virus. the quarantine, which closes to the facility to the public, took effect Thursday and continues through March 17.

According to shelter manager Lori Baxter, there has been one confirmed case of the airborne disease and several dogs, both at the facility and that have been adopted, have shown symptoms. but they have not been confirmed to have the disease.

“Distemper symptoms are similar to a number of other diseases,” Baxter said. “a couple of dogs that we suspected of kennel cough were adopted out.”

The symptoms — a runny nose, coughing, fever, vomiting and diarrhea — can take two weeks to present in the animal. There is no treatment for the disease, which attacks the dog’s respiratory, gastrointestinal, and central nervous systems.

“once a dog contracts it, only time will tell whether they will pull through or not,” Baxter said.

Dogs that showed symptoms were euthanized Thursday morning to prevent the spread of the disease and to relieve the animals’ suffering, Baxter said. any other dogs that present signs of the disease will also be euthanized.

The shelter, which currently houses approximately 70 dogs, will not allow any animals to leave or come into the shelter during the quarantine, Health Director bill Smith said in a statement. but animal control officers can bring in wild animals or dogs in bite cases if residents are not willing to quarantine the animal.

Baxter said she wants to keep people out of the facility so cats, although not affected by canine distemper, will also be quarantined.

“Distemper in shelter facilities is not uncommon,” Smith said in the statement. “in some areas of the country, distemper is a reportable disease, which underscores its severity.”

Similar cases occurred in Brunswick, Bladen, Cumberland and Sampson counties during 2010, many of which also required closures.

“Up until a year ago, this disease has not been seen in this area in 20 years,” Baxter said. “It is here in the area. It was just a matter of time before it reached the shelter.”

The disease can be prevented with a vaccination that is usually administered to puppies, which are more susceptible than adult dogs. Baxter said the “dual” vaccine also protects against parvo.

Baxter said many of the puppies at the shelter are given the dual vaccine through donations, but that a dog, which was either unvaccinated or not vaccinated before coming in contact with the virus, was admitted to the shelter in the last two to three weeks. Baxter advises people who have adopted a dog from the shelter during that period to take it to a veterinarian for an assessment.

“we are an open shelter,” Baxter said. “we do get sick animals, but we cannot turn away any animal because they are sick.”

Baxter also encourages all residents to get their animals vaccinated, saying that this incident could have been prevented with a shot.

“the illness at the shelter is a fraction of what is out in the community,” Baxter said. “the shelter is a reflection of the community and we need to do better. We’ve come a long way in reforming the shelter, now we need to reform the community.”

Smith and Baxter said the shelter is working with local and national rescues to hold a vaccination clinic at the facility. more information will be available at a later date.

— Staff writer Ali Rockett can be reached at (910) 272-6127 or arockett@heartlandpublications.com.