Man dies after being licked by his dog The man had an infection of Capnocytophaga canimorsus, a bacteria common in pets that can lead to infections in humans. It’s rare for an infection to occur, but when it does, it’s typically after a bite. This is more likely to occur in people with compromised immune systems. The fact that this individual was not bitten, but merely licked, and that he was otherwise in good health makes it a particularly odd case. Once doctors detected the bacteria they boosted the antibiotic regimen the man had already been on for four days. His condition continued to deteriorate, and the infection spread across his body, consuming his limbs and leading to tissue death across his arms and legs. His brain began to swell and scans of his abdomen revealed that blood flow was being cut off from some organs. His family and the doctors decided to cease treatment and the man succumbed to his infection 16 days after treatment began. The medical staff emphasizes that this case should be used as a warning to pet owners and doctors alike: Pet owners with flu-like symptoms should urgently seek medical advice when their symptoms exceed those of a simple viral infection, which in this case were severe dyspnoea (labored breathing) and petechiae (bleeding beneath the skin). Physicians confronted with such patients should ask about contact with dogs and cats. Such cases are, again, incredibly rare. Still, having a dog or cat does put you at a unique medical risk, and that’s something that all pet owners should understand.
You know what puts everyone at risk? Sharing the planet with a few billions of humans all of them might be vectors of lethal diseases that are bound to be compatible with you... Time to start getting safe now! At the very least we'll solve the overpopulation problem...
Certainly, no one should be freaking out about this. I mean, if you've got a pet this should be something you should be made aware of if you already weren't as it is a legit risk. However, that said, the risk is so low most people can blissfully go about their business and it'll never personally affect them. At the end of it all though it's about being more aware of yourself when you're ill. Too many people let something small build into something big because they don't seek out a professional and let things escalate until they're in the ER. And trust me... as someone who's had a really nasty bacterial infection before... you can tell the difference between that and the typical flu or cold which are viral.
Statistically, a dog (or worse, a cat) is more endangered by their human owner than the other way around... There's a chance of getting a serious infection from some pets, but usually it's the opposite.
This is why humans wash their hands after using the bathrooom. So much bacteria on your feces. Dogs and cats lick their own butt holes, don't let them lick your face. Same as if you wouldn't drink water out of toliet without flushing the poop.
Yes, typically we're much more dangerous to our pets than they are to us. And even then it's not a 100% save guard (it helps of course) since those feces particles go airborne every time a person passes gas. Also, if you have cats you should clean their litter boxes daily because of this.
My friend had a cat who literally vomitted himself to the death of dehydration. Just like that. With no apparent reason a healthy pet died. The veterinarian said that the tests and the section might or might not show anything, but the more likely the animal simply had an infection from the owner touching the pet food... Ouch. So, basically, wash your hands every time before and after you're doing anything with a pet for mutual safety.
And all i can think of is all those idiots i always hear saying a dogs mouth is one of the cleanest places there is lol
I agree this is very true. An older neighbor who has back issues told me she wears socks and shoes to keep her dog away from her toes since the dog likes to lick between toes. She doesn't want the dog getting sick from some sort of toe jam or anything like that.
Bah, that dog's licks didn't kill this guy - basic Darwinism killed this guy. What an utterly stupid 'report'.
I don't know why but this made my laugh. I feed my cat by hand (Dry food). I'm going to stop that now that I know bacteria from my hand might make her sick.
Ehh, just washing your hands before should be enough. Cats have pitifully weak immune systems and digestive tracks because of all the inbreeding done to them by humans. The biggest risk is always sharing human food with animals. Those yoghurts with beneficial bacterias? Well, they're beneficial to us...
Thanks for the tip. I just remember she got sick last year, and now I worry its my fault because I was feeding her after I had just finished mowing the lawn and was too lazy to wash my hands.
