The Mission of the Prairie Oak Veterinary Center is to protect and maintain the human-companion animal bond through appropriate and specific preventative, medical and surgical care; to provide humane medical attention to any creature furred, feathered or scaled, domestic or wild; and to guide, assist, and counsel clients through the process of pet loss whenever necessary.

 

***5/3/2016 Update: New Dog Flu Cases Reported in B-N***

We do have confirmed cases of Canine Influenza here in Bloomington-Normal. We are currently in the process of having samples tested to determine which strain is infecting our patients.

Pets at risk include dogs that go to boarding/daycare facilities, groomers, dog parks, etc. Young, elderly or immunocompromised dogs are especially at risk.

Until we have confirmation as to which strain we currently have here in B-N, we recommend vaccinating at risk pets for CIV H3N8 (the older Florida strain) and H3N2 (the newer Chicago strain). Each strain has it's own vaccine. Intially our pets will need a series of 2 vaccines given 2-3 weeks apart. Strongest immunity from the vaccine is not until 2 weeks after the 2nd vaccine.

Symptoms of CIV can be similar to other respiratory infections and include coughing, sneezing, lethargy and nasal discharge. Vaccination may not prevent infection but has been shown to lessen the severity and duration of illiness. The young, elderly and immunocompromised may develop more severe illness. Infected dogs should be isolated from other dogs for 21 days.

The well being of our patients is very important to us. We will be updating our page and recommendations as we learn more about the infections in our community.

Please call us at 454-8606 with any questions

For more detailed information regarding CIV, please visit the page below:

https://www.avma.org/KB/Resources/Reference/Pages/Canine-Influenza-Backgrounder.aspx