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USDA Grants Full License to Canine Influenza Virus Vaccine

Click to enlarge Map courtesy of Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health.

The full license means that the USDA confirms the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine. Nobivac Canine Flu “has been shown to significantly decrease the signs, severity and spread of CIV infection. The vaccine has also been shown to reduce the incidence and severity of lung lesions,” the company reported, adding that field experience data shows that the vaccine is well-tolerated.

The licensure follows the evaluation of the vaccine’s use by veterinarians since May 27, 2009, when a conditional license was awarded. Nearly one million doses of the vaccine have been sold to veterinary clinics and shelters throughout the United States during the past year.

“We are pleased the USDA has confirmed the value of this important vaccine for canine health,” said Steve Shell, head of Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health’s Companion Animal Business Unit. “Animal care practitioners have welcomed its availability. More than 9,000 small animal practices across the U.S. have the vaccine in clinic.

“Though not considered a core vaccine, Nobivac Canine Flu is commonly recommended by veterinarians for at-risk social dogs, i.e., those regularly receiving Bordetella vaccination because they are frequently in contact with other dogs.”

The company noted that the vaccine was developed in response to the growing threat posed by the virus as well as to the American Veterinary Medical Association’s 2006 call for the development of a vaccine against the spread of the disease.

CIV is a highly contagious respiratory disease in dogs caused by an influenza A virus, H3N8. In 2004, Cynda Crawford, DVM, Ph.D., clinical assistant professor of Shelter Medicine at the University of Florida, and Edward Dubovi, Ph.D., professor of Virology at Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, along with their colleagues, were the first to discover that the spread of the respiratory disease in the general dog population was caused by CIV.

“Like influenza vaccines used in other species, the canine influenza vaccine does not prevent infection,” Dr. Crawford said. “However, it significantly reduces clinical disease and the risk for pneumonia, and vaccinated dogs shed much less virus so they are less contagious to other dogs.

“Vaccine-induced protection is not only important to the health and welfare of individual dogs, but also decreases the likelihood of an influenza outbreak in a population if most of the dogs are vaccinated.”

Cases of canine influenza have been identified in 33 states and the District of Columbia. During 2009-2010, outbreaks occurred in shelters, kennels, dog daycare centers, veterinary clinics and other facilities in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Colorado, Connecticut and Virginia, the company reported.

Nobivac Canine Flu H3N8, made from inactivated virus, is administered by subcutaneous injection in two doses, two to four weeks apart. It may be given to dogs six weeks of age or older and can be given annually as a component of existing respiratory disease vaccine protocols to ensure more comprehensive protection, according to the company.

Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health is a subsidiary of Merck & Co. Inc. of Whitehouse Station, N.J. <HOME>

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USDA Grants Full License to Canine Influenza Virus Vaccine

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I have read many comments stating the "disease is so mild" and "easily treatable" - I have to ask, were any of your dogs affected with the H3N8 Canine Flu Virus?? Mine were and I lost 27 healthy working dogs to this virus. I treated for secondary aliment - pneumonia - and the dogs did not respond to ANY of the antibiotics. The death from the secondary disease, that was caused by this virus, was HORRIBLE. We euthanized many of the dogs so they wouldn't have to die a horrible, gasping for oxygen, death. So, for anyone to say this virus is MILD and EASY to treat - is irresponsible! Ida, Mexia, TX Posted: 11/15/2011 6:54:35 AM This is all about heaving marketing to individuals and dog owners who do not have access to the scientific data. The vaccine is safe. Fine, not a surprise. But the data that is available does not indicate that it is clinically effective. Lung lesions are not related to clinical disease. Vaccinated dogs were just as sick as non-vaccinated control dogs. There is no original evidence that the vaccine reduces secondary infections. Finally the disease is so mild, infrequent, and easily treatable, that the cost of the vaccine is not justified under any condition or in any population. Wayne, Davis, CA Posted: 6/16/2010 4:12:11 PM