Lethargic dog.

Dr. Marie replied:

I'm sorry to hear that Duke is having these problems. I can think of a few things that could be causing these symptoms.

Has Duke been vaccinated? If not, in some areas distemper virus can affect dogs and cause nasal discharge and lethargy. Distemper can be very serious. However, if he is up to date on his vaccines then distemper is quite unlikely.

Another possibility is kennel cough. While this virus usually causes coughing sometimes just nasal discharge and a fever (causing the lethargy) can happen. Some dogs will get over kennel cough on their own. So, as long as he is eating ok it is probably ok to wait for another day or two.

A tooth infection could cause this as well. If an upper tooth root is infected this can cause a one sided nasal discharge. Unfortunately most infected teeth need to be removed.

While a nasal tumor could cause these symptoms it would be very unlikely in such a young dog.

A fungal infection in the nose is possible too.

If he is still eating well then you probably don't need to rush to the vet right away. However, if these symptoms persist another day or two then a vet visit is a good idea.
However, I always tell people to follow their gut. If you think something is really wrong then a trip to the vet's today is probably good.

I hope everything is ok!

Dr. Marie

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