A recent outbreak of "kennel cough" has left Fulton's only animal shelter unable to accept new dogs for the past two weeks.
Tina Barnes, supervisor at the Sam and Daisy Grabb Animal Shelter, said the outbreak affected all four dogs at the shelter. Barnes said, while the outbreak has mostly passed, they are still working to sanitize all the kennels before they can begin accepting new dogs.
"We are sanitizing the kennels so that we can fight the infection and begin taking in dogs again," Barnes said.
Fortunately, Barnes said the shelter has not had anyone bring any dogs in during the outbreak. The shelter is still accepting cats from within the Fulton city limits.
"Kennel cough" is a term loosely used to describe canine infectious tracheobronchitis. The infection can develop in dogs when they inhale bacterial or viral particles, according to Texas A&M University's School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences. Symptoms include a dry "honking" cough, coughing to the point of retching, fever, loss of voice, and ocular or nasal discharge.
Barnes explained outbreaks of "kennel cough" are common in shelters, and each instance has a varying timeline. She hopes the shelter will be able to start accepting dogs again in the near future.
In case an animal does need to be taken in, there are alternatives in the county, Barnes said.
"We can make arrangements for any animals that need to be taken in. There's the Callaway County Humane Society, and we're not too far away from other options either," Barnes explained.