What can you get infected from a dog? Commonly known diseases, such as rabies or scabies, or less known parasitic diseases: giardiasis or toxocarosis. The latter are especially dangerous, because dogs are very often carriers of these difficult-to-treat zoonoses. Check what diseases dogs transmit and how to protect yourself from infection.
What zoonoses do dogs transmit ? How to protect yourself from them?You can get infected from the dogparasitic diseases or skin diseases. Many of them are called "dirty hands diseases" by veterinarians or parasitologists (doctors dealing with parasitic diseases). Therefore, a person can become a victim of these diseases if he does not follow the basic rules of hygiene when in contact with a dog. To avoid contamination, just wash your hands after playing with your pet and avoid situations in which the dog may lick your face or hands. Periodic vaccinations of the animal are also important.
WHAT CAN YOU GET FROM A DOG? WHAT DISEASES CAN BE TRANSFERRED BY DOGS?
Toxocarosis
It is a very difficult to treat parasitic disease caused by nematodesToxocara canis(canine roundworm). The infection occurs not only as a result of contact with dog's feces (where there may be over 200,000 eggs), but also when playing with a pet. The parasite's eggs are small and sticky, so they easily stick to your dog's fur. Canine roundworm becomes invasive only after 6 - 15 days after being expelled from the digestive tract of the dog, therefore it is very difficult to get infected when cleaning up fresh dog droppings. However, eggs residing in the soil may retain the ability to become infected for up to several years, therefore toxocarosis can also be infected through contact with contaminated soil.
After entering the human body, the eggs transform into larvae that live in various internal organs: kidneys, liver and even the brain, which can be fatal. Visceral larvae syndrome is most often manifested by headaches, convulsions, abdominal pain, rash, fever and, depending on where the parasite has established itself, enlargement of the spleen, liver, eye pain, sudden changes in behavior (localization in the brain). Despite the host's defense mechanisms, parasites can survive inthe human body, i.e. maintain the ability to continue wandering, even for 10 years!
Basic hygiene practices should be followed to avoid contact with invasive eggs. You should also keep an eye on children who eat sand or earth (known as geophagia). It is best to stay with them in fenced playgrounds or sandboxes. Puppies should be vaccinated at a veterinarian (administration of the drug should start when they are 2 weeks old).
Bubble
Echinococcal tapeworm is a type of tapeworm caused by single-chamber echinococcal tapeworm ( Echinococcus granulosus ) or, less commonly, multi-chamber tapeworm ( Echinococcus multilocularis ). Mature larvae (blisters), like the larvae that causetoxoplasmosis, , after getting into the human body, live in many organs, e.g. in the liver or kidneys. The larvae are covered with a thick casing in which there is a liquid. If it ruptures, internal bleeding may occur.
A person can get infected with echinococcosis by swallowing eggs in the stool and urine of dogs. For many years, echinococcosis does not give any symptoms, but only grows, sometimes reaching 30 cm in diameter. The symptoms that develop several months or even years after infection are mainly the result of pressure on the tissues of the growing larva and are similar to a slowly growing neoplastic tumor. These may be, depending on the localization of the larvae, jaundice (liver), hematuria, impaired renal function (kidneys), haemoptysis, cough, shortness of breath (lungs), mental disorders (brain).
Good hygiene should be followed to avoid contamination (wash your hands frequently, wash items your dog has come into contact with at high temperatures, etc.).
Giardioza
It is a parasitic disease caused by protozoa of the speciesGiardia intestinalis(flagellates). Parasites usually attack young dogs, which manifest as vomiting, foul green-brown diarrhea.
A human may become infected as a result of contact with the faeces of an infected dog. In adults and children, the symptoms of infection resemble those of food poisoning (nausea, loss of appetite, violent watery, fermented stools, mild fever). In children, the disease additionally leads to disturbances in the digestion of fats and carbohydrates, which, in combination with dehydration, may result in malnutrition of the body.
How to protect yourself from the parasite? Basic hygiene rules should be followed and food and water should be protected from contamination with animal faeces. CystsG. intestinalisare resistant to most disinfectants, including on chlorinationwater.
ImportantIs it possible to catch toxoplasmosis from a dog?
Of all domestic animals, only cats are the final hosts of the parasite that causes toxoplasmosis (the main source of infection in cats is protozoa in the meat of hunted rodents). Therefore, it is only from them that you can get infected with this disease, which is dangerous for pregnant women. Therefore, dogs, even those who are sick, are not a source of toxoplasmosis and do not pose a threat to humans. As veterinarians argue - in order to get infected with toxoplasmosis to a dog, it would have to be eaten raw.
Dog tapeworm
The psi tapeworm is caused by a parasite calledDipylidium caninum . Most infections are asymptomatic, but sometimes tapeworm infected dogs exhibit anal itching behavior.
The infection most often occurs in children who, after playing with infected dogs, do not wash their hands, kiss animals, and take contaminated objects collected from the ground and floors into their mouths. The symptoms of infection are very similar to the symptoms of infection with, for example, armed tapeworms.
How to prevent infection? Avoid situations where the dog can lick a person's face or hands with its tongue, as tapeworm eggs are also found around the dog's anus (which the dog licks frequently). The eggs are also found in the dog's feces as well as on surfaces that the dog has touched with the anus (mainly the floor).
Leptospirosis (Stuttgart disease, Weil disease)
Leptospirosis is a zoonotic disease caused by several types ofL spirochetes. interrogans.A human can get infected withL spirochetes from a dog. canicola(which cause Stuttgart disease) or e.g. from the speciesL. interrogans,which are responsible for the formation of the so-called Weil's team.
A person can become infected with this disease through contact only with the urine of an infected dog. Coils enter the human body through damaged skin and mucous membranes.
Many organs are attacked during an infection, most often the liver, kidneys and nervous system. In the case of Stuttgart disease, the bacteriaL. canicolaare found in the kidneys. Common signs of infection are increased thirst, vomiting, haematuria, and diarrhea with a blood clot. In the case of Weil's syndrome, the bacteriaL. interroganslocate in the liver, causing infectious jaundice.
To protect yourself from infection, you should follow the rules of hygiene and remember to vaccinate your dog.
Świerzbowiec psi
Świerzbowiec psi is a parasite belonging to the mite family. Canine scabies feed on cellsskin and multiplies on its surface. therefore, in an infected dog, the disease manifests itself as oval, plaque thinning of the hair.
Świerzbowiec is easily transmitted from dogs to people, not only through direct contact, but also indirectly through clothing, for example. In humans, the symptoms of scabies are: a rash that itches severely. A complication of the disease may also be mycosis (a consequence of a reduction in the protective functions of the skin). In young children or people with allergies, scabies symptoms can be easily confused with allergies.
To avoid contamination, watch your dog's fur, wash your hands frequently and wash clothes / underwear / bedding at high temperatures.
Dermatophytosis
Dermatophytosis is a fungal disease of the skin caused by three groups of fungi (Trichophyton, Microsporum and Epidermophyton) that feed on the keratin contained in the human epidermis.
Infection can occur through direct contact with an animal (e.g. by stroking a dog). The symptoms of the disease are itchy and red skin with lumps and vesicles with scabs. Nails and scalp may also be involved.
How to prevent infection? Avoid stray dogs and other animals that can transmit ringworm and check your pet's fur regularly.
Rabies
Rabies is the most dangerous disease todayzoonotic diseasebecause it affects the central nervous system and can lead to death. Human infection occurs as a result of being bitten by a sick animal or by contamination of its wound with saliva. One of the methods of protection against this disease is the administration of the rabies vaccine.
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