Kennel cough can become a big problem for your dog, so knowing how to treat and prevent it is very important. There numerous ways of preventing and treating kennel cough, but the best place to start is to keep your dogs up to date with their shots and never let them come in contact with strange dogs.
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Antibiotics
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If your dog is battling a bad case of kennel cough, the best place to start off is to use antibiotics. The most important thing to do when it comes to using antibiotics is to strictly follow the correct schedule and dosage instructions given to you by your dog's vet.
Vitamin C
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The best way to get your dog to recover quickly is to give it vitamin C supplements. The vitamins will help your dog battle its lung and nasal problems that come along with kennel cough and will help your dog's immune system fight the infection much better. Be cautious not to give your dog too much of the supplement, as it will cause irritable bowel syndrome. The rule of thumb for dosage is about 500 mg per 10 pounds of your dog's body weight.
Intranasal Vaccine
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Your veterinarian will most likely give your dog an intranasal vaccine in order to prevent kennel cough from coming back. This type of vaccine will help your dog's immune system and give it a boost when it matters most.
Inoculations
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Inoculations are very similar to intranasal vaccines and really do just about the same thing. The only big difference is how it is administered, which is intravenously. That means that instead of shooting the vaccine up the dog's nose, it is injected into the blood stream where it travels to the heart and can be distributed appropriately.
Humidifier
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For quick relief, you can use a humidifier to help your dog's lungs rehydrate. This will promote healing much quicker. The best way to do this is put your dog along with the humidifier into a very small room. Allow your dog to breath in the air for about 10 minutes. You can do this once a day.
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