OKLAHOMA CITY (KOKH) - The Oklahoma City Animal Shelter has closed to the public for the second time this year to keep an upper respiratory infection from spreading through the Shelter and to other dogs in the metro.
A release says the shelter’s vet staff noticed an uptick in coughing and a runny nose among the dog population on Thursday.
About 130 dogs have symptoms. There have been no deaths because of the infection.
The Shelter reports they are developing a plan as they wait for lab results, but they suspect the canine flu virus, the same virus that closed the Shelter on March 29.
"It was spreading too rapidly through our kennels, and obviously, we didn't want to risk animals coming in and getting it as well as sending animals out to expose the community with it," said OKC Animal Welfare Superintendent, Jon Gary, "So we made the decision yesterday (Saturday) afternoon to go ahead and close again for the second time."
The last outbreak earlier this year forced the OKC Animal Shelter to close for 45 days, and now less than a month since their reopening, they are having to close their doors again.
"It's definitely out of the ordinary you know, (the) first time we've ever seen Canine Flu here in Oklahoma City that we're aware of was in April, and so we never had seen it here before, and unfortunately, it's still in our community," Gary said.
Canine influenza is an infectious respiratory disease caused by an influenza A virus, similar to the viral strains that humans get.
With the infections spreading through the community, Animal Welfare warns Oklahomans to watch their dogs to see if they show any symptoms,
"If your dog (is) developing a cough or runny nose then that's a possibility and we definitely think you should consult your veterinarian," said Gary.
They also say to avoid taking your dog to places like dog parks and pet stores for the time being.
"Don't take your dog anywhere where there's gonna be a lot of other dogs at least temporarily," Gary said. "We really have to probably be really cautious and let this get through our community before we start engaging in those kinds of activities, again."
People who adopted dogs from the Shelter this week should monitor their dogs for upper respiratory-type symptoms such as cough and runny nose. They are encouraged to seek medical advice from their veterinarian if any of these symptoms develop.
Experts say they are unsure of what is causing the outbreaks, but say Oklahoma is not the only state experiencing them.
"It's ravaging Texas right now... A lot of Texas shelters are dealing with it as well," said Gary, "I don't want to say it's a new disease in shelters, but we're definitely seeing it more than we have in the past."
Animal Welfare says they are currently waiting on lab results to confirm the infection is the canine flu, they plan on being closed for at least 21 days.
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