In his discussion, Ellis (2015) acknowledges that, despite the identified weaknesses of corroborating studies, the weight of evidence indicates that available Bb vaccines provide some level of protection and it may be possible to enhance that protection by using a combination of existing vaccines (i.e., mucosal and parenteral) in a heterologous prime/boost approach. An equivalent approach has very recently been shown to be effective in French preclinical studies, in a mouse model of Bordetella pertussis infection ( Feunou et al., 2014). Whether dog owners and veterinarians would be interested and willing to comply with a more extensive, inconvenient, and expensive Bb vaccination regime in order to gain an increment of protection against CIRD is uncertain and could be addressed by market research.
Ellis (2015) finishes his discussion with an intriguing mention of the role of inter-species transmission of Bb, specifically between cats and dogs. Given that human beings can be infected by Bb ( Wernli et al., 2011) and perhaps colonised much more frequently than they are infected, the potential role of humans in the transmission of Bb to pet dogs and cats is intriguing and would seem to be worthy of further study.