Kennel Cough Outbreak At Doggy Daycare & Boarding Facility, Owner Doesn't Seem To Care.

Location: Pennsylvania

Hi all, I work at a doggy daycare and boarding facility, and I'm honestly at a loss with what's happening here. We've had a kennel cough outbreak that started with 3 dogs and has now spread to at least 5 more in our boarding and training program.

These dogs are quarantined in a basement level of the facility with a fan, their own yard, and separate door access. While we've kept their slip leads separate and only use them for sick dogs, the same staff (including me) handle both the sick and healthy dogs upstairs, without any clothing changes. We try to wipe ourselves down with lysol wipes and washing hands but without clothing changes its impossible to fully know if we're still contaminating dogs. That means potential exposure is still being carried upstairs to the daycare dogs — who continue to come in every day.

The worst part is, only the owners of the sick dogs have been told. Daycare and new boarding clients have NOT been informed at all, despite the risks that is carried with kennel cough. When we expressed concerns about this problem, we were told that we "don't want to cause a mass panic if we don't have to.". What's insane is that we've been actively vocal about saying we need to shut down for a week to clean but have been met with silence or "we'll just see what happens.". Another major issue is that dogs that are board & train aren't really even being trained because they're lethargic but their owners are still being charged for the boarding stay (we've been told to give them extra days of training to prevent charging them the days they aren't being trained). We're doing the best we can but me personally, am so overwhelmed. I've deep cleaned every kennel but am so so worried for these dogs that they're gonna get sick, especially the ones that come in for daycare since I kennel cough is an airborne disease. Additionally, we rent out the space in front of our facility for people to come use WHICH IS THE SAME YARD THE KENNEL COUGH DOGS GO OUT TO! It's insane! This entire situation is so stressful and I honestly don't know what to do and am seeking advice. I'm concerned that this could be a potential legal problem with the facility but all I want is for these dogs to be happy and healthy. Any advice would mean a lot, I just want to do the right thing.