Posted on April 28, 2009 by: WayCoolDogs

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Presently we are being told by dog health experts that  dogs cannot catch swine flu, with one of those experts the American Veterinary Association. All we know is that swine flu is not contagious to dogs—based on the simple fact there is no known cases of dogs affected by swine flu at this time.

However, the majority of dog owners and dog lovers are seriously concerned about this rapidly developing  mutation of the swine flu virus and their dogs—and with good reason with it going back to the swine flu 1976. This is a virus which changes rapidly and with little warning. And there is no “Here today…Gone tomorrow” with it. Otherwise, the swine flu would never have developed to what and where it is today, with the swine flu mask one of the big sellers for both pet owners and their dogs!

We know it is bad in humans. The United States Federal Government has just declared a public health emergency with countless cases of swine flu diagnosed in our country and the world with numerable deaths. According the CDC (Centers for Disease Control), at 1 pm on April 27, 2209, the states which were originally involved consisted of: seven cases in California, two cases in Kansas, twenty-eight cases in New York City, one case in Ohio, and two cases in Texas. Today there are even more all over the world. But at this time, dogs catching swine flu is still not a big concern.

STRAINS OF SWINE FLU

To figure out whether our dog will get swine flu or not, we need to look at exactly what swine flu is first—-swine flu has 4 different strains of the flu in it. This makes it pretty difficult to say with 100% accuracy that all four strains are safe for all animals – excluding dogs–especially when the mutation is pretty active. Basically it is not a normal thing for flu virus to pass from an animal to a human being, with rare cases coming up of the reverse.

The present human cases of  “swine influenza A (H1N1)” are mutating in such a way that humans are getting it—but is slowly moving to animals. With this in mind, it is impossible to guarantee anything regarding a rapidly mutating virus that just does its own thing.

SWINE FLU VIRUS INFECTION IN PIGS

Known as a respiratory disease of pigs, swine flu is caused by the type A influenza virus—and has a huge impact on the United States swine industry—not the dog industry. They have their own problems with the canine influenza.

Recognized as a common occurrence in the winter months, pig flu causes high illness rates in hog herds with many deaths unless vaccines are given. Symptoms of swine flu in hogs vary:

• A “barking” sound or coughing sound
• Nasal discharge
• Sneezing
• Breathing difficulties
• Not wanting to eat
• High fevers

Resulting in reduced fertility or elevated abortion rates among sows (female pigs), swine flu can be prevented in herds by vaccinating the pig herd, using proper ventilation systems in the pig buildings, using bio-security measures, practicing good hygiene measures for those who work on the pig farm. Yet scientists are still unable to develop a vaccination for the swine flu in humans that is guaranteed to work, or agree on how it is to be given.

The swine flu virus that is spreading to humans is not a normal situation (as we all know)  because the flu viruses are typically different from one another, even though the symptoms may appear similar. Flu always seems like flu, no matter who has it.

What many dog owners do not know is that generally, 15% to 25% of pig farmers along with 10% of veterinarians have already been diagnosed with having the  swine flu virus. This is because they have had direct exposure to the pigs, or human-to-human transmissions have occurred. And nobody ever worried about it—until now.

THE BRIDGED GAP IN DRUGS AND REGENERATIVE MEDICINE BETWEEN PIGS AND DOGS

According to the European Science Foundation, “In view of the close genetic, anatomical and physiological similarities between dog and pig on the one side and human on the other, large animal models are likely to catalyze drug development.” Hmm….

The foundation is working on a workshop that focuses on dogs and pigs because they are quite similar in scale in addition to human anatomy, while also serving quite complementary functions. I guess my question would be this. If they are similar enough to be used together for human disease research, why wouldn’t they be similar enough to share swine flu? I mean, it was never supposed to pass to humans either and now look at us…oink, oink.

CONTINUOUSLY MUTATING VIRUSES

My theory is that even though the dog is thought to be safe from Swine Flu as there will never be a guarantee on it. We are talking about a medical and research field who changes their data and testing results for people on a daily basis. Billions of dollars of money gets lost and people lose more faith in the health industry.

We cannot and should not state with absolute certainty that no animal is 100% foolproof of catching anything anymore, especially with the virus mutating the way it does. HOWEVER….not practicing careful hygiene and exposing the dog to human or pig diagnosed with the disease is something  only a fool would do. Just because dog #1 has not had it yet doesn’t mean yours will not.

If  you do not know about swine flu, make sure you read about it from a qualified websites instead of the corner gossip column from Grandma Gertie who heard it twice removed. Excluding us, of course. Make sure the website you research has an .edu or a .gov at the end of the link address,  from the actual organization or laboratory itself with researched data.

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• Swine Flu Pandemic and Dogs
• Can Dogs Carry Swine Flu on their Fur?
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• Update on Swine Flu In Dogs