Canine coronavirus, sometimes called Corona, is a rare viral intestinal infection of dogs which is usually short in duration. The virus itself causes mild transient diarrhoea in dogs and is certainly harmless to other species – however, most infections in dogs go completely unnoticed.

How is it spread?

Infected dogs normally shed the virus in the faeces for one to two weeks, sometimes longer. The incubation period is one to five days.

Signs and symptoms

Diarrhoea is typically sudden in onset and can be accompanied by decreased appetite. Secondary complicating factors such as parasites, other bacteria (eg:CPV) can prolong the disease.

Prevention and control

CCV is generally mild and self-limiting with spontaneous recovery occurring in 7-10 days. Combined infection with parvovirus can occur, however, there are already vaccines available that offer complete protection against parvovirus (like Nobivac’s CPV vaccine) – vaccinating against coronavirus is therefore not essential.