WHITE SETTLEMENT (1080 KRLD)- The P.A.W.S Animal Center in White Settlement has temporarily closed due to a highly contagious and often deadly virus.
"We were notified yesterday by our veterinarian that we contract with that one of our animals that was sent off to be treated for what we initially thought was an upper respiratory infection ended up coming back as distemper," says Christopher Cook, White Settlement police chief.
Distemper attacks the respiratory, gastrointestinal and nervous systems of puppies and dogs.
"It typically leads to their death," says Chief Cook; "and even if they do survive, it's a very hard road to recovery."
The city has isolated the entire shelter population, which consists of about two dozen dogs.
"We're not accepting out of an abundance of caution any new animals into the center until we have good feedback and reassurances that we thoroughly cleaned it out to prevent the future spread of the virus and to make sure that none of our existing animals are going to come down with it, because it is highly contagious," Cook says.
It's unclear exactly how long the shelter will be closed for.
"Initially, we're going to do two weeks," says Cook, "but it will likely turn into about a month-long (closure), maybe even longer. It's really going to depend on if additional animals contract the virus."
There are currently four additional dogs with presumptive cases of distemper, with test results pending.
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