Coccidioidomycosis poses a significant welfare threat to dogs in the southwestern United States with expanding geographic range due to climate change.
Dogs with disseminated valley fever suffer from simultaneous multi-system disease including pneumonia, bone pain from lytic lesions, neurological signs from CNS involvement, and chronic malaise from systemic infection. Bone lesions cause severe lameness that dramatically reduces quality of life, and pathological fractures can occur with normal activity. The protracted treatment course requires months of antifungal medication with regular monitoring. Geographic expansion of endemic areas due to climate change means dogs in previously low-risk regions are now at exposure risk, and veterinarians outside traditional endemic areas may lack familiarity with the disease presentation. Early diagnosis before dissemination provides substantially better welfare outcomes.