{"id":14516,"date":"2026-02-05T22:48:16","date_gmt":"2026-02-05T21:48:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ngdcare.nl\/uncategorized\/why-does-one-dog-get-sick-and-the-other-one-doesnt\/"},"modified":"2026-06-26T13:03:34","modified_gmt":"2026-06-26T11:03:34","slug":"why-does-one-dog-get-sick-and-the-other-one-doesnt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ngdcare.nl\/en\/blog-en\/why-does-one-dog-get-sick-and-the-other-one-doesnt\/","title":{"rendered":"Why does one dog get sick… and the other one doesn’t?"},"content":{"rendered":"


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NGD Care | Immune system<\/span><\/p>\n

What kennel cough, Giardia, flu and one particular patient taught us about the immune system<\/h1>\n

The same contamination, the same exposure, but completely different outcomes. Where is the difference? <\/p>\n

NGD Care | Stefan Veenstra, DVM<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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On a playing field a dog with kennel cough walks. He coughs and plays on. With every cough, he spreads bacteria through small droplets in the air. <\/p>\n

In the end, ten dogs play with him.<\/p>\n

Within a few days, one dog ends up at the vet with serious complaints. Another dog also starts coughing a bit, but is free of complaints after three days. The rest of the dogs are not bothered by anything. <\/p>\n

The same bacterium, the same time and the same exposure. Yet the results are completely different. Exactly the same pattern can be seen in parasites such as Giardia duodenalis, and even in humans during a flu epidemic, as recently reported by the RIVM. <\/p>\n

The difference is not in the bacteria, the virus or the parasite.
\nThe difference is in the immune system.<\/div>\n

\u2014 NGD Care \u00b7 Integrative Veterinary Medicine<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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How does that immune system actually work?<\/h2>\n

Most of the immune work is not done through the blood, but through the intestine.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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70\u201380%<\/div>\n
of the immune system is located in the intestine, in the Gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT): the control chamber of the mucous membrane defense<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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The GALT controls protective substances that end up in the mucus of:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
\u2192 Intestines<\/td>\n\u2192 Airways<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\u2192 Nose and throat<\/td>\n\u2192 Skin<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

The main substances that the GALT controls, and what they do:<\/p>\n