New Vaccine from Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health is First for Canine Influ...( Vaccine Against Canine Flu Granted Co...),Health

Vaccine Against Canine Flu Granted Conditional License by USDA

ROSELAND, N.J., June 23 /PRNewswire/ -- Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health, the global leader in veterinary biologicals, today announced the availability of the first vaccine against canine influenza virus (CIV), which was granted a conditional product license by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) on May 27, 2009, for use by veterinarians in the United States. (http://www.aphis.usda.gov/newsroom/content/2009/06/caninevacc.shtml)

"Canine influenza is a highly contagious respiratory infection that has a significant impact on dogs housed in shelters, kennels and communal facilities," said Cynda Crawford, D.V.M., Ph.D., University of Florida, Clinical Assistant Professor of Shelter Medicine. "The availability of a vaccine can help prevent the medical, financial and emotional costs associated with this new virus."

Canine influenza was first identified in the United States in 2004. Since then, CIV has continued to spread and has now been detected in dogs in 30 states and the District of Columbia, according to Dr. Crawford and Edward J. Dubovi, Ph.D., Professor of Virology, Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, two of the nation's leading experts on Canine H3N8 who have been tracking the disease since 2004.

Most dogs have no immunity to canine influenza because it is a novel pathogen and, therefore, the infection can spread quickly through animal shelters, adoption groups, pet stores, boarding kennels, veterinary clinics and any location where dogs congregate. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), there is no evidence of transmission of the virus from dogs to peo
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