What you need to know about distemper
Distemper is a contagious virus that affects the digestive, respiratory and nervous systems in dogs. Here’s what you need to know.
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Two more dogs at Pinal County Animal Care and Control tested positive for canine distemper virus, a highly contagious and deadly disease.
The results came days after another dog at the facility, Kendrick, fell severely ill with distemper and was humanely euthanized.
Shelter staff is now pleading with members of the public to foster the infected dogs, Quasimoto and Fluffy, before the facility is forced to euthanize them. The facility also needs help fostering other dogs to help prevent the spread.
“When we’re this overpopulated, like we are right now at 200% and 300% capacity, it’s a recipe for disaster. … The facility was not meant for isolation, and the reality is, we cannot keep positive (infected) dogs here,” said Katrina Rodriguez, Pinal County Animal Care and Control deputy director. “So please, if you can come out and foster … please do, because you would really be saving a life.”
Rodriguez said Quasimoto, a border collie mix, had been in isolation since April 25 and was a “really special dog.”
“He’s housebroken, he is so polite. He sits, he gives paw. He’s nice on leash, he doesn’t bark,” Rodriguez said. “I really, really would like him to get out of here. … I really don’t want to have to euthanize him.”
Fluffy, a 1-year-old German Shepherd, is a “big ball of energy” and “you would never know he is sick right now,” Rodriguez said. The dog is good with other animals and “is a really easy, nice companion dog,” though she recommends they go to homes without other dogs given their infection.
Both Quasimoto and Fluffy are on the euthanasia list not for behavioral issues, Rodriguez clarified. Rather, it was because they came to the shelter unvaccinated and were then susceptible to distemper exposure. While the shelter vaccinates all animals at intake, the inoculation takes 4 weeks to become effective and requires boosters.
That 4-week period is why Rodriguez pleaded with the public to foster additional dogs and, if possible, delay surrendering pets or strays.
“We do not want to set them up for failure,” she said.
Canine distemper virus, a severe and highly contagious disease, attacks the respiratory, gastrointestinal, and nervous systems of dogs.
Outbreaks of distemper have devastated county animal shelters in Arizona and often lead to weeks- or months-long recovery processes. In 2019, 40 dogs were euthanized after an outbreak at the Maricopa County Animal Care and Control facility in Mesa. In 2021, a dozen dogs were infected at Maricopa County’s west shelter.
The Pinal County facility became aware the infection was spreading when Kendrick on April 25 started showing symptoms. He had a runny nose and difficulty breathing. Then he started twitching and clacking his teeth.
The shelter system, which has 159 kennels but more than 359 dogs, responded immediately. They started testing dogs who were housed on the same side of the shelter as Kendrick, and quarantined roughly 10 who were showing symptoms. Officials put out a notice to the community and sought fosters for puppies, who were most at risk of infection.
On May 1, Rodriguez celebrated the fact that “people came out of the woodwork and fostered every single puppy…”
The facility has continued to halt dog walking and playtime to help prevent the spread. Cats at the shelter remain unaffected since they do not catch the distemper virus, and adoption operations for those animals continue.
There is a small group of dogs, Rodriguez said, who are fully protected from the virus due to vaccinations and boosters, if the public wanted to come and volunteer walk them.
But the biggest priority, for now, is getting Quasimoto and Fluffy fostered before the facility is forced to put them down, and navigating the shelter’s response to the virus.
As of May 1, the shelter was still waiting on results of 20 to 25 tests of other dogs.
“This is not going to be a short process,” Rodriguez said.
Taylor Seely covers Phoenix for The Arizona Republic / azcentral.com. Reach her at tseely@arizonarepublic.com or by phone at 480-476-6116.
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