Natural Infection of Domestic Dogs with Raccoon Dog and Fox Amdoparvovirus Resulting in a Severe Disease Outbreak

Abstract

Raccoon dog and fox amdoparvovirus (RFAV) has been reported in raccoon dogs and foxes, but natural infection in domestic dogs has not previously been documented. During March–April 2026, samples from four affected Dobermann dogs from a kennel near Novi Sad, Serbia, were submitted for laboratory investigation. After negative testing for canine adenovirus, canine coronavirus, herpesvirus, parvovirus, distemper virus, influenza A virus, and leptospirosis, metagenomic sequencing was performed on selected tissues, followed by bioinformatic analysis and targeted RFAV PCR screening of additional outbreak-associated samples. Affected dogs had prolonged illness characterized by conjunctivitis with ocular and nasal discharge, occasional blue eye appearance, progressive weight loss, poor coat quality, jaundice and biochemical evidence of hepatic injury, and neurologic signs including paraplegia in advanced cases. Sequencing generated 434,220 reads and identified multiple RFAV hits; pooled assembly produced a 4799 bp consensus genome with approximately 97% similarity to known RFAV strains and genome organization consistent with the genus Amdoparvovirus. RFAV DNA was subsequently detected by virus-specific PCR in an epidemiologically linked dog and across diverse specimen types including blood, urine, kidney, spleen, brain, lung, testicle, ileocecal lymph node, and throat swabs, whereas clinically healthy unrelated dogs were PCR-negative.