Miami-Dade Animal Services Halt Offerings Due to Infectious Virus Affecting Dogs

A highly contagious virus is spreading through South Florida, making it dangerous for pet owners to bring their dogs with them to public areas.

It’s called canine infectious respiratory disease complex (CIRDC), and affects a dog’s respiratory system, hampering their breathing and potentially causing coughing and susceptibility to other infections. 

Miami-Dade County Animal Services has issued a warning to pet owners to keep their pets safe, despite the warm weather, according to 7News. 

“A disease that is caused by multiple viruses and bacteria that pretty much infect the respiratory tract of dogs and can cause pretty severe infection including pneumonia,” said Miami-Dade County Animal Services Chief Veterinarian Dr. Maria Serrano to a local Miami news station. 

Because of the uptick in cases, animal services have paused some of their pet services.

“Wellness services such as vaccinations, micro-chipping and spay and neuter. We are suspending intake of owner surrenders into our population, and we are suspending events that require our dogs to go into the community,” said Serrano.

According to the affiliate, officials said some ways to help prevent it from spreading is by:

• Visiting your veterinarian
• Keeping your dogs up-to-date on routine vaccines
• Avoiding dog parks and other settings with several other dogs

CIRDC symptoms last seven to 10 days, according to officials. If symptoms last longer or become more severe, it is best to contact your veterinarian immediately.

Related Stories