MYTH: Valley Fever, also known as Coccidiomycosis, is a fungal infection found commonly in the Southwestern US. Named after the San Joaquin Valley in California, not our Valley of the Sun, it is caught by inhaling infectious spores from aerosolized dust and the fungus is ubiquitous in Phoenix dust.
Dogs are more susceptible to Valley Fever infections that humans, but they also get exposed more than we do, due to their running about in dust-laden areas and being unable to avoid breathing in heavily dust laden air.
Still, a dog or person who is infected with Valley Fever is not infectious; they cannot pass the infection on to other people or animals. Infection comes from inhalation of infectious dust.