Sep 23, 2007 - 04:03:03 CDT
MINOT (AP) - The Souris Valley Humane Society animal shelter here has been closed to dog adoptions and put under quarantine because of canine distemper cases.A stray dog that was taken in apparently is the source of the virus, veterinarian Ron Thunshelle said. Distemper can be prevented by vaccination, but there is no specific treatment for it, he said.
"This is a pretty contagious virus in enclosed areas and can be a difficult disease to control in that small environment," Thunshelle said. "And so in the best interest of the animals that are housed at the shelter now and as a preventative for animals that may be coming into the shelter later, they've decided to quarantine these animals and close the doors to dogs for a time period of possibly 60 days."
Kennel manager Kristine Seabolt said the facility has never dealt with anything this major.
"We've had other illnesses that have come in that have concerned us and we've had to quarantine a small number of animals," she said. "The problem with this is that there's a large number of dogs that could have been exposed to this, so that's why we feel it's just safer to quarantine the entire set of dogs that we have."
Ever Heard of Quarantine as a Prevention? wrote on Sep 24, 2007 9:39 AM:
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