Advertisement

SKIP ADVERTISEMENT

New York Today

New York Today: An Outbreak of Dog Flu

A sick puppy.Credit...Ruth Fremson/The New York Times

Good morning on this foggy-to-fab Wednesday.

Something was wrong with Moca.

This month, the normally peppy 9-year-old Labrador retriever had become lethargic and stopped eating. She had also developed a hacking cough and a fever.

“We couldn’t figure it out,” said Moca’s owner, Michael Venezia, 82, of Williamsburg, Brooklyn. “We were concerned because Moca is vaccinated and medicated year-round for every conceivable malady that may befall her.”

Mr. Venezia took Moca to a local veterinary hospital, where he was told that she had H3N2 — canine influenza.

And Moca wasn’t the only sick dog in Brooklyn.

No organizations track the number of canine flu cases, but we called more than a dozen veterinarians and animal hospitals in Brooklyn, where cases of the flu have been reported, and found that since mid-April, at least three dozen dogs have been infected, including a few that were hospitalized. The outbreak has made dog owners across the city anxious about socializing their dogs and has led some to consider vaccination.

We asked veterinarians and experts around town about the flu, and what you can do to prevent it.

How worried should I be?

“We should be concerned, but not panicked,” said Dr. Dennis J. Slade, an internist at the Animal Medical Center on the Upper East Side. Dr. Slade said that the current strain of the virus was pretty infectious and that it would most likely spread to other boroughs. While most healthy dogs should be fine, he said, there is about a 10 percent chance that dogs could develop a secondary infection that could be fatal.

What happens when a dog is infected?

Symptoms include cough, mild lethargy, a drop in appetite, possibly a fever and discharge from the nose and eyes, said Dr. John de Jong, the president-elect of the American Veterinary Medical Association. Dogs can infect others for weeks after symptoms have diminished.

What should I do if my dog becomes ill?

Call your vet. Sick dogs should be given fluids, rest and a proper diet, Dr. de Jong said. As a precaution, if your dog is infected or ill, keep it away from other dogs for at least three weeks.

Where did this flu come from?

This flu strain was first diagnosed in Asia around 2005 and it moved to the United States in 2015, when an outbreak in Chicago sickened thousands of dogs, said Edward Dubovi, a professor of virology at Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, which tracks the disease. Dr. Dubovi theorized that this strain came from dogs rescued from meat markets in South Korea.

Can dog flu affect humans?

No. There have been no known cases of it infecting humans, although H3N2 has occasionally been diagnosed in cats.

How can I prevent my dog from getting the flu?

There is a vaccine that costs around $80 to $120, but pet owners should discuss with their veterinarian whether it’s necessary, Dr. Slade said. “If possible, you may wish to forgo exposure to large dog populations — not getting it groomed until this blows over, or speaking to your dog walker, kennel or day care to see what safeguards they’ve instated.”

Here’s what else is happening:

Our weather is on the mend.

A foggy morning should dissipate into mostly sunny skies and a high of 75 by this afternoon.

Take an extra-long walk with your pup today. Showers enter the forecast tomorrow and hang on through the weekend.

New York City’s first lady, Chirlane McCray, is the chairwoman of the Mayor’s Fund to Advance the City of New York. But the nonprofit’s fund-raising has slowed, and her attention has been elsewhere. [New York Times]

Image
The chairwoman of the Mayor’s Fund to Advance the City of New York, Chirlane McCray.Credit...Karsten Moran for The New York Times

As a result of a host of legal issues that need to be worked out, lawyers in the case of Michael D. Cohen will meet to discuss the disputes. [New York Times]

A sick juror dropped out of the federal bribery trial of Edward Mangano, the former Nassau County executive. The juror was replaced, and deliberations have begun again. [New York Times]

Office parks used to be the lifeblood of many suburbs. Now that many are empty, some communities in New Jersey are seeing them as an opportunity for redevelopment. [New York Times]

A lawyer for Harvey Weinstein said that the woman whom he is charged with assaulting had actually had a decade-long consensual relationship with him. [New York Times]

Image
Benjamin Brafman, Harvey Weinstein’s lawyer.Credit...Dave Sanders for The New York Times

Todd. R. Howe, the government’s disgraced star witness, will not be called to testify in an Albany corruption trial scheduled to start in a couple of weeks. [New York Times]

Did you miss Manhattanhenge last night? You’ll have another to chance to view it tonight. [New York Times]

After Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo’s announcement for conditional pardons allowed New Yorkers on parole to vote, some nonprofits are trying to help educate parolees about their voting rights. [am New York]

The M.T.A. announced that it planned to increase train and bus service in Queens during rush hour. [Queens Tribune]

An opera has debuted in the catacombs of Green-Wood Cemetery. [The Brooklyn Paper]

Today’s Metropolitan Diary: “Still Pedaling, Pops?

For a global look at what’s happening, see Your Morning Briefing.

Dance to the sounds of Cumbia and Vallenato music at Bryant Park in Midtown Manhattan. 6 p.m. [Free]

The Rooftop Films series returns with a screening of “American Animals” at the William Vale in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Doors open at 7 p.m. [$16]

Join a discussion “Cheers to Science: The Absence of Absinthe, Distilling the Science of the ‘Green Fairy,’” part of the World Science Festival, at the Ace Hotel in Midtown Manhattan. 7 p.m. [$40]

Shakespeare in the Park is back. A performance of “Othello” at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park. 8 p.m. [Free; here’s how to get tickets]

Yankees host Astros, 6:35 p.m. (YES). Mets at Braves, 7:35 p.m. (SNY).

Alternate-side parking remains in effect until June 15.

For more events, see The New York Times’s Arts & Entertainment guide.

Image
Where do you watch?Credit...Ruth Fremson/The New York Times

The World Cup kicks off next month in Russia.

For many local soccer fans, there will be no obvious team to root for: The United States didn’t qualify. But here in New York, it’s easy enough to switch loyalties — for every nation in the tournament, there is a devoted expat community somewhere in the five boroughs. And if you want to watch the World Cup with the locals, you go to the bars, restaurants and bodegas in which they gather.

Where, exactly? That’s where we’d like your help.

We’re looking for venues where enthusiastic football supporters gather. Maybe it’s a Serbian restaurant in Flushing. A Saudi Arabian hookah bar in the Bronx. Or a Japanese sushi chef’s backyard in Bay Ridge.

Let us know who you’ll be cheering for and the best place to watch your team, using the form below. We may pay it a visit during our coverage of the tournament.

New York Today is a morning roundup that is published weekdays at 6 a.m. If you don’t get it in your inbox already, you can sign up to receive it by email here. Also, we are experimenting with a limited-run newsletter this summer to offer you the best events, food and drink in New York. Sign up for Summer in the City here. As a weekly newsletter, it’s not a commitment. And like summer, it’s fleeting — it will only publish through Labor Day.

For New York Today updates throughout the day, like us on Facebook.

What would you like to see here to start your day? Post a comment, email us at nytoday@nytimes.com, or reach us via Twitter using #NYToday.

Follow the New York Today columnists, Alexandra Levine and Jonathan Wolfe, on Twitter.

You can find the latest New York Today at nytoday.com.

Advertisement

SKIP ADVERTISEMENT