Canine CIRDC (Kennel Cough): NAVLE Study Guide

CIRDC comes up on the NAVLE in a few different flavors: the classic post-kennel coughing dog that needs no treatment, the pneumonia complication that does, and the CIV outbreak question that tests whether you know your H3N8 from your H3N2. The pathogen list is long, but the exam almost always anchors on Bordetella and CIV. Know those two cold and the rest falls into place.

The Pathogens: What Each One Actually Does

CIRDC is a syndrome, not a single infection. Multiple pathogens cooperate – viral agents damage the mucociliary apparatus and the epithelial barrier, then Bordetella and Mycoplasma colonize the compromised mucosa. This is why simple cases escalate to pneumonia when the dog’s immune defenses are already stretched by shelter stress, crowding, and suboptimal nutrition.

Clinical Signs: What Looks Like What

The signature of uncomplicated CIRDC is that harsh, honking, dry cough – the kind that sounds like the dog has something stuck in its throat. Tracheal palpation reproduces it. The dog is typically bright, eating normally, and afebrile. That last point is the key examiner tell: no fever, no lethargy, no anorexia. The dog looks fine, it just coughs.