Many grooming, boarding facilities and doggy daycares require your companion dog to have the Bordetella vaccine every six months or annually. This requirement may be due to laws (regional, local, or state), the facility’s insurance purposes, or the belief of those responsible. The shortened interval is because the duration of vaccinated immunity to Bordetella bronchiseptica lasts for only 6 to 12 months. The ultimate question is though: “Is your dog ONLY getting the Bordetella vaccine or other vaccines in addition to Bordetella?”
What is Bordetella?
Bordetella bronchiseptica is a bacterium that is inhaled. When mixed with viruses such as parainfluenza and/or adenovirus-2 (CAV-2) or bacteria, the result could be kennel cough, which is a basic cold in dogs with generally mild symptoms and no fever in otherwise healthy dogs.
It only really becomes dangerous if it develops into secondary pneumonia, but that is RARE, unless the animal is heavily parasitized and malnourished.
Bordetella Vaccine
“Bordetella” has become the basic word for the kennel cough vaccine. The vaccine itself may have other vaccine components against the usual kennel cough viruses.
For instance, after a quick survey of the various manufacturers, my staff found:
| Administration Route | Bordetella Only | Bordetella + Parainfluenza | Bordetella + Parainfluenza + CAV-2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Injectable | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Intranasal | 2 | 3 | 3 |
| Oral | 4 | 1 | 0 |
Now, you have a decision to make. Did the boarding facility mean only Bordetella vaccine, Bordetella/parainfluenza, or all three? Ask for clarification.
It is basically unknown how long parainfluenza immunity lasts – either from natural exposure, vaccination, or a combination of the two. Honestly, the studies investigating this give ranges from 1-3 years. Nowadays, experts err on annual vaccination for this.
CAV-2 vaccine immunity can last at least seven years after the initial puppy shots and booster. The American Animal Hospital Association recommends vaccinating against it every three years. In any event, if you have vaccination records available, show them to the facility.
If they tell you only Bordetella, you can call your veterinarian or other local veterinarians to see if they carry either of the single, monovalent intranasal or preferred oral Bordetella vaccines.
[Note: The intranasal and oral Bordetella vaccines induce the body to secrete alpha-interferon, an immune protein that affords cross protection against the other viruses in the kennel cough complex, whereas the injectable Bordetella vaccine cannot induce interferon release and is thus even less protective of the other upper respiratory viruses.]
My preference would be to find out if you can sign a waiver that holds the facility harmless in case another dog there develop kennel cough a week or so later. The premise is that an unvaccinated dog cannot infect vaccinated dogs. We call this herd immunity. [Further, none of these upper respiratory vaccines are 100% effective anyway.]
I understand, though, that sometimes this is just not possible and there is no alternative but to give the Bordetella vaccine.
If you are unable to have a waiver signed, I prefer oral Bordetella with or without parainfluenza. As well, give the vaccination separately from other vaccinations. Give it at a minimum (NOT a maximum but a minimum) of two weeks before boarding your pet.
Why the oral? The oral version of the Bordetella vaccine with or without parainfluenza vaccine causes the body to release interferon which helps cross-protect against the other upper respiratory viruses. The intranasal version induces the same release of interferon reaction – but is associated with more adverse events, as it tends to spray around the face and eyes and even onto the person giving it. Injectable Bordetella vaccine does not offer this added benefit.
Canine Influenza Vaccines
Canine Influenza Virus (CIV) has recently been added to the complex by some experts. CIV is either the H3N8 or H3N2 for which injectable vaccines exist, but it is not added to the Bordetella vaccines like CAV-2 and parainfluenza. By the way, I do not recommend vaccines against CIV because the symptoms are generally mild.
Spacing Vaccinations
As many of you know, I recommend the distemper and parvovirus vaccines given between 9-10 weeks of age, again at 14-16 weeks of age, and then a parvovirus only vaccine at 18 weeks. At one year, either give a distemper and parvovirus booster or measure serum antibody titers. Every three years thereafter measure serum antibody titers. Rabies should be given four weeks apart from other vaccines and at 20-24 weeks, and then after that according to the law.
So, as you can see, I do not suggest parainfluenza, CAV-2, Bordetella, or even canine influenza, Lyme and leptospirosis vaccines, unless a local endemic or other high exposure risk circumstances exist. I certainly do not want a dog given all of these vaccines in one veterinary visit.
However, these “combo-wombo” vaccines are sometimes given and a few dogs still experience serious adverse reactions, or even death. For instance, I have heard of situations where puppies received a 5-way vaccine in addition to “Bordetella” in one veterinary visit. The 5-way is generally an injected DHLPP: distemper, adenovirus-2 (cross-protects for infectious canine hepatitis, adenovirus-1), leptospirosis, parainfluenza and parvovirus.
So, depending on which “Bordetella” vaccine is used, your dog could be getting a double dose of parainfluenza and adenovirus-2 in one day. This is another reason to ask your veterinarian what “Bordetella” vaccine they carry.
Originally Published: July 31, 2016; Updated: June 13, 2024