It is possible that the vet may decide it is not Kennel Cough which would be good news in more ways than one by the sounds of it
However, regarding the vaccine issue, it is not always as straightforward as it sounds. Your vet was right confirming the generally accepted fact that the Kennel Cough vaccine is not usually necessary unless required by boarding establishments.
The Merck Veterinary Manual states that Infectious Tracheobronchitis (Kennel Cough) is a "mild self-limiting disease" unless contracted by aged, debilitated dogs or very young puppies.
The problem is that some dogs actually get ill from having the vaccine and there is certainly a period of time after administering it that require the dog to be kept away from other dogs anyway as they are contagious from the vaccine at that time. The Nobivac Kennel Cough vaccine has these warnings:
"Particularly in very young susceptible puppies, mild discharges from the eyes and nose can occur from the day after vaccination, sometimes accompanied by sneezing and coughing. Signs are generally transient, but in occasional cases may persist for up to four weeks. In animals which show more severe signs, appropriate antibiotic treatment may be indicated.
Only healthy dogs should be vaccinated......unvaccinated dogs may react to the vaccine strains with mild and transient respiratory signs....
Do not administer in conjunction with other intranasal treatments or during antibiotic treatment. No information is available on the safety and efficacy from the use of this vaccine with any other except the live vaccines of the Nobivac series against canine distemper; canine contagious hepatitis caused by canine adenovirus type 1; respiratory disease caused by canine adenovirus type 2 and canine parvovirus disease. It is therefore recommended that no other vaccine should be administered within 14 days before or after vaccination with Nobivac KC.
In case antibiotics are administered within one week after vaccination, the vaccination should be repeated after the antibiotic treatment is finished.
Immunocompromised individuals should avoid any contact with the vaccine and vaccinated dogs for up to six weeks after vaccination."
Just the other day I heard of a puppy that had been vaccinated against KCough suffering a bad reaction where his airways swelled up restricting his breathing - he is now on steroids and antibiotics and cannot continue at his Puppy training class for another four weeks.
