Canine influenza virus is a new virus that has been recently identified as part of kennel cough, a collection of viruses that cause respiratory problems in dogs.

Don't let vets scare you into vaccinating hour dog for this virus. The media hype -- people assuming their dog will catch swine flu, a completely unrelated strain -- is causing pet owners to ask their vets to administer the canine vaccine, and vets are more than willing to do so.

This virus is actually a mutation from the equine in influenza strain and causes flu like symptoms. Most vets will treat for "kennel cough" and do specific testing to determine exactly what strain of influenza is affecting the dog.

In the vast majority of cases, dogs recover uneventfully from this illness. Only rarely is hospitalization is needed -- usually only for very young puppies or immuno-suppressed animals, such as older, debilitated or immensely stressed animals.

Do the common sense things to help your dog's immune system to remain strong and resilient: feed your dog a raw food, species appropriate, balanced diet. Avoid close contact with animals that may be been exposed to the virus, and don't distract and immune-suppress your dog's immune system with other unnecessary vaccines on an annual basis.

In the words of microbiologist Shiv Chopra:

“When I learn as a microbiologist that H1N1 can infect people, swine, turkey and cat I must conclude that it is a ubiquitous virus which can thrive in all these species. Then, if I learn that this virus can also thrive in snakes I must conclude that any vaccine made from it to prevent H1N1 influenza in people is nothing but snake oil medicine.”