SAN ANTONIO — Officials are warning of a rise in cases of a deadly virus among shelter dogs in the San Antonio area.
City of San Antonio Animal Care Services says they have seen an increase in the Canine Distemper Virus lately.
The agency is asking all residents to do what they can to keep their pets safe, starting with ensuring your dogs are vaccinated against the highly contagious disease.
"Distemper is a deadly virus that attacks a dogs' respiratory and nervous systems," said ACS in a Facebook post. "Shelters across Texas, including San Antonio, have seen a rise in pets contracting this fatal virus. Our team does what we can to keep pets safe by vaccinating pets as soon as they enter our care, routinely sanitizing and cleaning all spaces and supplies, and wearing appropriate PPE when handling most at-risk pets."
Despite thier best efforts, Distemper is still showing up in local shelters and rescues due to all of the unvaccinated pets in our community, which has a histirically low vaccination rate.
ACS has partnered with Animal Defense League of Texas to host community clinics twice every month to help folks get their pets vaccinated for free.
San Antonio residents can get their dogs or cats vaccinated and chipped.
Each eligible pet 12 weeks or older will get a 1-year Rabies vaccine and a registered microchip if needed.
DHPP vaccines will be provided for canines, and FVRCP vaccines will be provided for felines. These core vaccines will help protect pets against a number of diseases we see in our community, including Distemper.
The free vaccines and chips are limited to the first 100 pets served and the clinics are open to City of San Antonio residents only. Make sure to bring a current photo ID.
For a complete list of upcoming vaccination clinic locations and times, please visit saacs.info/events.
Upcoming vaccination events:
- February 18: Dellview, 507 Basswood
- March 4: Lincoln Park, 2803 E Commerce
- March 18: Copernicus Park, 5003 Lord Rd
- April 1: Cuellar Park, 502 SW 36th Street
- April 15: Tom Slick Park, 7400 State Highway 151
Let's do our part to keep our community and our pets safe and healthy by making sure our they are vaccinated, chipped and kept safe on our property.
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