9 dog diseases in humans
In this article by Animal Expert, we will talk about dog disease in humans. As we will see, these are mainly parasitic diseases, such as fleas or mosquitoes, considering vector-borne diseases because they require the intervention of a third-party organism to produce canine infestation. For all these reasons, prevention is critical. Therefore, if you keep your dog properly dewormed and vaccinated, you will largely avoid the options of contagion and, therefore, transmission.
- Internal parasites in dogs are the main responsible for gastrointestinal disorders.
- Although the heartworm or heartworm also stands out.
- We’ll see it in the next section.
- Parasites in the digestive system that can pass from dog to human are:.
The spread of intestinal parasites in humans can occur in different ways, but in general it can occur when the animal smells infested stools, licks its hand and uses it to scratch its mouth, for example. If the parasitic dog defecates in the house or garden and the stools stay there for a while, you can also become infected when you get it back, if you don’t take the necessary hygiene precautions. The same is true in parks, because by touching the land that has come into contact with infested dogs, we can ingest the parasites. Children are usually more sensitive to this because they can play with sand and put their hands on their faces or even eat it.
An adequate program of internal and external deworming is the best prevention against these disorders, especially in more vulnerable animals, such as dogs. So, as someone who likes to protect, take him to the vet and unsevere your pet.
In the disease of the human dog, it is important to highlight a disease that is becoming increasingly relevant to heartworm disease, or also known as heartworm disease. In this vector disease, the vector is a mosquito that carries the parasite in its oral organs. Therefore, if you bite your dog, it can infect you. The wire will pass through different stages of maturation until it reaches the pulmonary arteries, on the right side of the heart, even in the vena cava and veins of the liver. In addition, females release microfilariae into the bloodstream, which can pass into a new mosquito when it bites the dog.
As you can see, the dog cannot transmit the disease directly to humans, but they can become infected if a parasitic mosquito bites them, so the dog acts as a reservoir of the parasite. Although heartworm is considered underdiagnosed and asymptomatic in humans, it can have very serious consequences in the dog, as it causes serious damage to fundamental organs such as the heart, lungs and liver, which can lead to death. Their treatment is also risky, due to blockages that can be caused by adult worms. Therefore, in this case, prevention is also essential, through the use of products that prevent mosquito bites and establish guidelines that limit the exposure of dogs to mosquitoes, as well as through the use of internal pest control agents that prevent the end of the worm life cycle. It is worth mentioning the importance of double monthly deworming, especially if you live in places where this worm is endemic.
The most common skin conditions that can be transmitted from dogs to humans are scabies and ringworm. These two diseases are well known, so this article on canine diseases in humans could not be missed. Its features are:
In the case of these diseases, it is essential to keep the house clean, perform aspirations, disinfect and wash beds and other objects that come into contact with the dog. It is also important to keep the animal under control and take it to the veterinarian as soon as you notice the first symptoms.
Rabies is the most important canine disease in humans because it causes many human deaths, especially in Asia and Africa. In Central and South America, it is possible to find high-risk areas and others where immunization programs have already been successfully implemented. In Europe and much of North America, the disease has already been eradicated.
Rabies is a viral disease for which there is a vaccine, the only way to fight it. The causal virus belongs to the family Rhabdoviridae, damages the nervous system, infects dogs and humans through contact with the saliva of the infected dog, which is produced through a bite.
In addition to the zoonotic diseases listed above, humans may also develop leishmaniasis or leptospirosis, and here’s how to:
This parasitic condition has a considerable extent, so it has been included in diseases transmitted by dogs to humans. As mentioned in the case of the heartworm, the dog cannot directly infect humans, but acts as a reservoir of this disease, which is also transmitted by mosquito bite.
Symptoms are varied, as skin or general lesions may occur. Given the role of the dog as a reservoir, it is essential to establish a treatment, it is better to follow the prevention guidelines that include deworming to repel the mosquito and also vaccination against leishmania.
After reviewing the main parasitic diseases, we include leptospirosis, a bacterial disease for which there is a vaccine, in the list of diseases transmitted by dogs to humans. The symptoms it produces are varied and can affect the digestive system, liver or kidney. Bacteria spread through urine and can stay in the ground for months. Dogs and humans become infected upon contact with it, allowing bacteria to enter the body through an injury or drink contaminated water. Requires veterinary treatment.
Fleas, ticks and lice are parasites that can easily pass from dogs to human skin. Although this change of host does not constitute a disease transmitted from the dog to humans, humans can also suffer the contagion of certain diseases by the bite of these parasites, because, as we have seen throughout the article, they carry several pathologies already mentioned. and many others, such as Lyme disease. They usually cause symptoms such as itching, rashes, sores and even gastrointestinal problems.
Now that you know what diseases dogs transmit to humans, here are the basic preventive measures:
This article is for informational purposes only, in Animal Expert.com.br we cannot prescribe veterinary treatments or make any kind of diagnosis. We suggest that you take your pet to the veterinarian in case of any type of condition or discomfort.
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