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Blastomycosis in dogs | VETgirl Veterinary Continuing Education Videos

In this VETgirl video, we review blastomycosis in dogs. This is a 1-year-old, male neutered, German Shepherd that presented for a one month history of “pneumonia” that was failing to respond to antibiotic therapy. On presentation, the dog was tachypneic and febrile, with abnormal auscultation. An endotracheal wash was performed using sedation and a sterile endotracheal tube, and revealed blastomycosis on cytology. You can see the presence of large, blue budding yeast on the slide. Further treatment included nasal oxygen supplementation, IV fluid therapy, antifungals (fluconazole), short term steroid therapy (to help with fungal die off) and symptomatic supportive care. Afer several days, the dog was transitioned to itraconazole. Long term treatment (e.g., 6 months to a year) is typically necessary for successful treatment (which can be cost prohibitive). When in doubt, please be aware that endotracheal lavages should ideally be done as early as possible, to make sure we are appropriately treating the patient!

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