Common Viral Diseases in Dogs

Canine Distemper Virus (CDV)

💉Family: Paramyxoviridae (Morbillivirus)

Disease: Canine Distemper

Systems: Respiratory, GI, nervous, integumentary, lymphoid

⚠️Clinical Signs: Fever, nasal/ocular discharge, cough, vomiting, diarrhoea, seizures, ataxia, myoclonus, hyperkeratosis of footpads ("hard pad disease")

🔬Histopathology: Intranuclear & intracytoplasmic inclusion bodies, lymphoid necrosis, demyelination in CNS

Canine Parvovirus Type 2 (CPV-2)

💉 Family: Parvoviridae (Protoparvovirus)

Disease: Canine Parvoviral Enteritis

Systems: GI, hematopoietic, cardiac (puppies)

⚠️ Clinical Signs: Hemorrhagic diarrhoea, vomiting, dehydration, lethargy, leukopenia, myocarditis (puppies)

🔬Histopathology: Crypt necrosis, villus atrophy, basophilic intranuclear inclusions, myocardial necrosis/fibrosis

Canine Adenovirus Type 1 (CAV-1)

💉 Family: Adenoviridae (Mastadenovirus)

Disease: Infectious Canine Hepatitis

Systems: Hepatic, vascular, ocular, renal

⚠️ Clinical Signs: Fever, depression, vomiting, diarrhoea, abdominal pain, icterus, corneal oedema ("blue eye"), petechiae

🔬Histopathology: Hepatocellular necrosis, basophilic intranuclear inclusions, vasculitis

Canine Adenovirus Type 2 (CAV-2)

💉 Family: Adenoviridae

Disease: Infectious Tracheobronchitis (Kennel Cough Complex)

Systems: Respiratory

⚠️ Clinical Signs: Harsh dry cough, nasal discharge, mild fever, lethargy

🔬Histopathology: Tracheal epithelial necrosis, intranuclear inclusions

Canine Parainfluenza Virus

💉 Family: Paramyxoviridae

Disease: Part of Kennel Cough Complex

Systems: Respiratory

⚠️ Clinical Signs: Mild cough, nasal discharge, tonsillitis, fever

🔬Histopathology: Tracheal epithelial necrosis, mild lymphocytic inflammation

Canine Influenza Virus (CIV)

💉 Family: Orthomyxoviridae

Disease: Canine Influenza

Systems: Respiratory

⚠️ Clinical Signs: Cough, nasal discharge, fever, lethargy, pneumonia (severe cases)

🔬Histopathology: Necrotising tracheitis, bronchitis, interstitial pneumonia

Rabies Virus

💉 Family: Rhabdoviridae (Lyssavirus)

Disease: Rabies

Systems: Nervous system

⚠️ Clinical Signs: Furious form—aggression, hypersalivation; Dumb form—paralysis, lethargy; always fatal

🔬 Histopathology: Negri bodies in hippocampus & Purkinje cells, nonsuppurative encephalitis

☣️ Highly zoonotic and fatal

Canine Herpesvirus-1 (CHV-1)

💉 Family: Herpesviridae (Varicellovirus)

Disease: Fading Puppy Syndrome / Hemorrhagic Disease of Neonates

Systems: Multi-organ (neonates), reproductive (adults)

⚠️ Clinical Signs: Puppies—crying, lethargy, abdominal pain, death; Adults—abortion, stillbirth)

🔬 Histopathology: Multifocal necrosis and haemorrhage, intranuclear inclusions

Canine Coronavirus (CCoV & CRCoV)

✔ Causes mild enteritis (CCoV) and respiratory disease (CRCoV).

💉 Family: Coronaviridae

Systems affected: Gastrointestinal, respiratory

⚠️ Clinical signs: Diarrhoea, vomiting, anorexia (enteric); coughing, nasal discharge, mild fever (respiratory)

🔬 Histopathology: Villus atrophy (enteric); necrotising tracheitis (respiratory)

Canine Papillomavirus

✔ Causes oral or cutaneous papillomatosis.

💉Family: Papillomaviridae

Systems affected: Integumentary

⚠️ Clinical signs: Warts on lips, mouth, eyelids, or skin; usually self-limiting

🔬Histopathology: Epithelial hyperplasia, koilocytosis, intranuclear inclusions

Feline Panleukopenia Virus (FPV) / Canine Parvovirus (CPV-2)

✔ CPV-2 is the canine counterpart, derived from feline panleukopenia virus.

💉 Family: Parvoviridae

Systems affected: Gastrointestinal, hematopoietic, cardiac (puppies)

⚠️Clinical signs (CPV-2): Hemorrhagic diarrhea, vomiting, dehydration, leukopenia, myocarditis in puppies

🔬Histopathology: Intestinal crypt necrosis, villus atrophy, intranuclear inclusions