HOW YOUR PET CAN MAKE YOU SICK

It’s hard to avoid being licked by your dog – for canines this is a way of showing their affection. But their mouths harbour all kinds of germs that could make you seriously ill. Capnocytophaga canimorsus are bacteria commonly found in dogs and cats.

It’s estimated that up to three-quarters of dogs have these bacteria in their mouths – it causes them no harm but if it’s transferred into the human body, either as a result of a bite or through saliva getting into a cut on the skin, it can have disastrous consequences, leading to gangrene, septic shock and even death.

Young kids and people with compromised immune systems are most at risk but experts say to be safe all pet owners should avoid allowing their pets to lick them.

Dogs, cats, rodents, reptiles and amphibians are all capable of transmitting salmonella, Clostridium difficile (C diff), and E coli, which can cause severe gastrointestinal disease in humans.

In addition dogs can carry hookworms and roundworms from eating faeces and licking other dogs.

Many people, including doctors, don’t take the health risks posed by domestic pets seriously enough, according to a study by the department of veterinary preventive medicine at Ohio State University in the USA a few years ago.

“Studies suggest physicians don’t regularly ask about pet contact, nor do they discuss the risks of zoonotic diseases [illnesses that can be passed between animals and humans] with patients, regardless of the patient’s immune status,” says Dr Jason Stull, one of the authors of the study.

Cats’ mouths also harbour bacteria such as pasteurella and Bartonella henselae, which can lead to skin and lymph node infections.