GAINESVILLE, Fla., Sept. 22 (UPI) -- A University of Florida scientist in Gainesville says a new, deadly and highly contagious canine flu virus has been detected in seven U.S. states.
The extent of the spread of the virus, believed to have mutated from an equine influenza strain, has not been determined, the New York Times reported Thursday.
Dr. Cynda Crawford, an immunologist at the university's College of Veterinary Medicine, is studying the virus and told the Times it spreads most easily where dogs are housed together. But she said the virus might also be passed on the street, in dog runs, or even by humans transferring it from one dog to another.
She said it was not known how many dogs have died from the virus, but scientists believe the fatality rate might be as high as 10 percent among puppies and older dogs.
She told the Times symptoms were often mistaken for "kennel cough," a common canine bacterial illness.
Both diseases can cause coughing and gagging for up to three weeks, but dogs with canine flu may get fevers as high as 106 degrees and have runny noses, the Times reported. A few will develop pneumonia, and some of those cases will be fatal.
