Infectious canine hepatitis is also known as Hepatitis Contagiosa Canis (HCC), infectious hepatitis or contagious liver disease, and it can be fatal. The disease is caused by canine adenovirus type 1 (CAV-1).
In unvaccinated dogs, canine adenovirus can cause serious damage, above all to the liver, blood vessels and kidneys, within about 4–7 days of the dog being infected.
Symptoms
Symptoms of the disease are rare in Swedish dogs thanks to widespread vaccination. It is worth remembering, however, that the virus itself is still present in both outdoor and indoor environments, and dogs do not need to meet each other, or even be near a sick dog, to become infected.
Infection with canine adenovirus does not always lead to illness. In older dogs, you often do not even notice that they are infected. Other dogs get mild symptoms that can resemble those seen with kennel cough.
The animals that do fall ill show diarrhoea, nausea and abdominal pain, which makes the dog reluctant to move. Besides these typical symptoms, high fever and severe lethargy are seen.
The mucous membranes of the mouth and eyes may be pale and/or yellow.
Visible bleeding and swelling of the neck, head or body are also common.
The disease can progress extremely quickly, and young dogs, especially puppies, are worst affected.
The dog may die suddenly after only a few hours of symptoms. Sometimes the dog is found dead before any symptoms have been seen at all, and there is a risk that people think it has been poisoned.
If the dog survives the infection, a severe eye inflammation often develops some time after recovery.
A pregnant bitch that becomes infected may give birth to dead puppies, or the puppies become infected and die shortly after birth. The bitch herself need not show any symptoms of illness.
Prevention
I vaccinate dogs against infectious canine hepatitis with Nobivac DHPPi every three years.
Read more about infectious canine hepatitis on the website of the Swedish Veterinary Agency (SVA), in Swedish.
