Infectious diseases of dogs are dangerous to humans. What can you get infected from dogs?

Gloomy stories about dangerous diseases that a dog owner can contract from their pet - favorite “horror stories” transmitted not only by word of mouth, but also circulated in the media can make especially impressionable people afraid of even just being in the same room with a dog, not not to mention attempts to pet the animal.

1. It is easy to become infected with worms from your pet, in particular toxocariasis. Half-truth. Let's start with the fact that infection is theoretically possible. But!

Firstly, the infection process is only possible if a person has an extremely weakened immune system as a result of a serious illness.

Secondly, once in the “unfamiliar” human body, Toxocara and dog roundworm eggs, as a rule, do not find conditions for development and die simply from temperature changes. In the human body they are “colder” than in the dog’s body. Therefore, cases of human infection from a dog are extremely rare. And if you have the habit of washing your hands after contact with unfamiliar animals, then the likelihood of infection tends to zero.

4. A dog can easily infect a person with diroflaria. Not certainly in that way. There are pulmonary-cardiac and subcutaneous diroflariasis. Infection occurs through a mosquito bite. A person cannot become infected directly from a sick dog, but the disease can be transmitted by a mosquito that a little earlier drank the blood of a sick animal.

When people around you are sick with the flu or other viral diseases, a reasonable question arises: can a dog catch a cold from a person? After all, the pet is always nearby, licking the patient, lying next to him. Is there a danger to our tailed friends? Read more in the article.

First, let's understand the terms. Popularly, the term “cold” can cover diseases caused by various infections or hypothermia. Accordingly, there are two scenarios for the development of events:

We are interested in the first case when one of the people in the family gets sick. Veterinarians claim that influenza viruses or other respiratory viral diseases (ARVI, acute respiratory infections) of humans are not transmitted to their pets.

Dogs have their own viruses. One of them - canine influenza virus, which was identified in 2004 in Russia among the greyhound breed. Symptoms are similar to human flu:

• heat,
• cough,
• sneezing,
• lethargy,
• decreased appetite.

It is transmitted by airborne droplets and the disease can be transmitted by humans. But a person will not get sick, but a cat has such a possibility.

Despite the fact that a person is not able to infect a pet with the flu, he may be guilty of developing a cold due to hypothermia.

Causes of colds in dogs

• not a sufficiently active lifestyle. This behavior reduces the animal's immune barrier. Walk your pet for a long time. If the weather is unfavorable, shorten the time of the walk, but do not abandon it.
• hypothermia. In the cold season, dress your pet in suits if the specifics of the breed require it. Do not allow eating snow, ice or drinking cold water. If the dog lives in a booth, insulate it for the winter. Do not bathe your animal in cold weather. Dogs are afraid of drafts, especially wet dogs.
• balanced diet. This is important for the immune system, which can fail if there is insufficient nutrition without vitamins. In winter, increased nutrition is required. Do not change your diet suddenly.
• vaccinations. Timely vaccinations and a preventive examination by a veterinarian will protect your pet.

From the article you learned that human influenza viruses are not able to infect a dog, but a person can do a lot to protect their pet from getting a cold. If you encounter symptoms in your dog that are similar to a human acute respiratory infection, then do not ignore it, contact your veterinarian.

Dogs and cats are our favorite pets. But, unfortunately, they can infect their owners with serious infectious diseases, such as: campylobacteriosis, cat scratches and Rocky Mountain spotted fever. Campylobacteriosis is caused by. They are found in the gastrointestinal tract of infected dogs, cats, hamsters, birds and farm animals - sheep, cows, pigs. Campylobacter jejuni can enter the human body through animal excrement, undercooked meat or unpasteurized milk. Contaminated water can also become a source of infection. Symptoms of the disease include diarrhea, abdominal pain and elevated temperature bodies. More than two million cases of campylobacteriosis are reported every year, and the bacterium Campylobacter jejuni is considered the main cause. Remember that this bacterial infection extremely contagious - all family members and especially children are at great risk. Campylobacteriosis is treated under the guidance of a doctor using antibiotics.

Cat scratch disease and rocky mountain spotted fever

Cat scratch disease can occur when a person is bitten or scratched by a cat infected with the bacterium Rochalimaea henselae. Symptoms of the disease include inflammation of the lymph nodes, fever, headache, weakness, which usually go away without drug treatment. However, your doctor may prescribe antibiotics if the infection gets worse. Rocky Mountain spotted fever is spread by ticks infected with the bacterium Rickettsia ricketsii. Symptoms include high fever, chills, muscle pain, headaches, and a rash that may appear on the wrists, knees, ankles, feet, abdomen, and other parts of the body. Spotted fever is treated with antibiotics.

A severe viral disease is rabies. How to protect yourself from a fatal disease?

Rabies is a fatal infectious disease caused by the Rabies virus, which, along with the saliva of an infected animal, enters the human body through bites or wounds.

What animals can carry rabies? The list is quite extensive and includes:

• dogs,
• cats,
• raccoons,
• the bats,
• skunks and foxes.

People bitten by a sick animal should treat the wound as soon as possible with soap and water, iodine solution or alcohol. Then it is necessary to inject rabies immunoglobulin into soft fabrics around the wound and into it itself. After which treatment is carried out with an anti-rabies vaccine. Widespread preventive immunization of pets significantly reduces the risk of transmitting the deadly virus to their owners. In addition to rabies, bites (especially to the hands, face and neck) from dogs and cats can cause other serious problems. Deep puncture wounds do not heal well, infection often occurs and soft tissue abscess develops. A cat can cause even more serious wounds than a dog. Often deep bites require immediate medical attention and antibiotics.

Skin infectious disease - ringworm

(otherwise scab, dermatophytosis, trichophytosis) is a skin disease caused by several types of protozoan fungi that can be found in the soil or on the skin of people and animals. Children easily catch ringworm by touching infected animals such as dogs or cats. The disease can be diagnosed by round, dry areas of skin with a red border. When the scalp is affected, the skin begins to redden, swell and become covered with flaky scales. Bald patches often appear. Ringworm is treated with antifungal medications, including shampoos, creams, and oral medications.

And be healthy!

Which doctor should I contact?

If signs of an infectious disease appear (fever, muscle pain, headache, bowel problems, etc.), you should contact an infectious disease specialist, and if the patient’s condition is serious, call “ Ambulance" At fungal disease skin and hair, you need to visit a dermatologist or mycologist. For some infections that can be contracted from animals, additional consultation with a neurologist, ophthalmologist, or obstetrician is necessary.

Pet cats and dogs live side by side with their owners. Often people stop seeing them as animals, perceiving them as family members and treating them accordingly: hugging them, kissing them, feeding them from their hands, which they then do not wash. Some people can even eat with their beloved dog from the same plate.

This behavior is, of course, unacceptable. And not only because animals cannot be humanized. The most important thing is that there are dog diseases that are dangerous to humans, which are transmitted from contact with a sick animal.

These are such serious diseases as helminthiasis, leptospirosis, toxoplasmosis, rabies, etc. More than 30 dangerous diseases of cats and dogs are known, 10 of which can be transmitted to humans. Let's take a quick look at some diseases that are easy to catch:

What dog diseases are transmitted to humans?

- Leptospirosis. It can be transmitted through direct contact with a sick animal or its urine. The likelihood of the disease increases under conditions of high humidity, when swimming in polluted bodies of water with stagnant water. Leptospira enters the body through skin lesions and mucous membranes. Leptospirosis affects internal organs, in particular the kidneys and liver.

How to protect yourself: The main means of prevention is to vaccinate dogs. Hyperimmune serums are used to protect against infection. Therefore, vaccinate your pets on time. If the animal is sick, show it to the veterinarian as soon as possible and begin treatment. Be sure to practice good hygiene when interacting with a sick dog.

How to protect yourself: First of all, maintain hygiene, wash your hands after each contact with an animal. Don't kiss, hug, or let your dog lick your face. Avoid contact with stray animals.

Have your animal examined regularly by a specialist. Carry out special treatment of the animal and all family members against worms. Follow preventive measures, including subjecting meat products to feeding your dog to mandatory heat treatment.

- Rabies. An extremely dangerous viral disease that affects domestic and wild animals. It is transmitted to humans by a bite. The virus contained in saliva enters the blood, after which it affects the central nervous system. The animal cannot be treated and always dies.

How to protect yourself: To protect from dangerous disease animal, be sure to vaccinate annually. Try to avoid any contact with wild, stray animals, take regular measures for deratization in private homes.

Within a few hours after infection, signs of the disease appear, which include: nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, high temperature, up to 40 degrees, fever, general weakness. If urgent treatment measures are not taken, respiratory paralysis and pneumonia may occur, often resulting in death. Therefore, it is very important to carry out treatment under the supervision of a doctor.

You cannot eat wild animal meat without a preliminary conclusion on its safety, which is issued by a veterinarian.

- Lichen (microsporia). Perhaps the most common disease transmitted from animals to humans. Caused by a pathogenic fungus that is extremely contagious. There are two types of pathogens: trichophytosis and microsporum.

It should be noted that people with weakened immune systems are most susceptible to infection. Therefore, contact of children and elderly people with sick animals should be limited as much as possible.

How to protect yourself: Monitor your pet’s health and have regular checkups.
examinations of him skin. Take if necessary Urgent measures to treatment. In veterinary pharmacies you can purchase modern antifungal medications for the treatment of microsporia.

In conclusion, I would like to note that this is not an exhaustive list of dangerous diseases that you can contract from your pets. It can be continued for a long time.

In any case, remember that you, as the owner of an animal, are responsible not only for his health, but also for your own, as well as for the health of others. Therefore, to avoid problems, vaccinate your pets regularly.

Does the flu happen in dogs?

Nobody likes to have a cold or viral disease. Often, at these moments only our four-legged pets remain next to us. They look faithfully into our eyes, warm us when we are cold, and try in every possible way to ease our pain (o). However, Are they at risk of catching flu or colds from us? Yes, and in general, can a person infect a dog with the flu? Or is it still worth taking precautions in relation to our four-legged pets?

Ways to get infected with influenza

Before answering the question of whether a person can infect a dog with the flu, let's turn to the mechanism by which the virus itself enters the human body. We could have become hypothermic, or caught the disease from its carrier.

Accordingly, our pet may get sick if:

• viruses, fungi, bacteria will enter his body;
• he will become hypothermic - just swim in cold water, drink cold water, or simply walk longer than usual in bad weather;
• his body is weakened, and the immune system does not cope with bacteria that enter the mucous membranes.

At the same time, pay attention to a very important point.

According to veterinarians, human influenza viruses and other respiratory viral diseases do not pose a threat to dogs. That is, theoretically, an owner who is sick with the flu cannot infect a dog.

But don’t rush to think that the danger has passed.

Canine flu

Animals, particularly dogs, have their own viruses. So, for example, in Russia, in 2004, the canine influenza virus was identified. Then the greyhound dog breed suffered the most from it. At the same time, the symptoms of the flu were very similar to human symptoms:

• in animals there was a high
• the dogs coughed and sneezed,
• general lethargy and decreased appetite were observed.

Why can a dog get the flu?

And although the cases of canine influenza registered in 2004, fortunately, did not recur, most often dogs get colds, not because viruses and harmful bacteria enter their body, but because their body got hypothermic. In addition, the following circumstances can contribute to the development of a cold in a dog:

1. The dog's passive lifestyle, lack of sufficient and quality walks (o). As a result, the animal's immune barrier is automatically reduced, and it becomes more vulnerable to viruses. That is why experts recommend not to forget about long walks in good weather, as well as additional insulation in bad weather. Snow and rain outside the window is not a reason to refuse a walk; rather, it is a reason to get it and go for a walk according to a shortened program.
2. The next one flows smoothly from the previous point. Very often the dog’s body suffers from real hypothermia. If a dog has short hair, it needs clothing in the fall and winter. If an animal lives outside, in a booth, it must be sufficiently insulated and windproof. You should not experiment with bathing dogs in open water in bad weather. Animals also need to be protected from drafts.
3. An unbalanced diet and lack of vitamins, all this becomes the reason that the immune system begins to fail and cannot cope with the attack of viruses and bacteria. Especially increased nutrition is needed in winter and spring. Then it is also relevant.
4. Lack of vaccination and preventive examinations from veterinarians increases the risk that the animal will get sick.
5. Dry air in the room - the use of heaters, especially in winter, leads to the fact that the air in the room becomes dry. This automatically leads to drying out of the animal’s mucous membranes and the latter can no longer resist viruses. Instead of a barrier preventing the disease from entering the body, they turn into a kind of gate. That is why animal owners need to additionally humidify dry air and monitor its indicators using a special hygrometer device, and not by eye. What may seem comfortable to you and me may be completely unsafe for a dog.

Video about flu in dogs

Today we talked about whether an owner can infect a pet with the flu. Human viruses are not scary for dogs. But, in the case of dog flu, humans can be a carrier of the disease. Also, improper care for a pet provokes the development of viral and colds him. Therefore, it is important to properly care for your dog. If you nevertheless encounter symptoms similar to those of human flu, only it’s not you who is sneezing, but your dog, do not hesitate to visit the veterinarian. Trying to cure your dog of the flu at home is quite difficult. Besides, your pet’s health is not something worth risking...

Has your dog ever had the flu? Do you take precautions for your pet when you have the flu? We will be interested to know your answers.