A snuffling friend croaked into her handkerchief that it was so hard to keep the dog away when she took to her bed with a cold. He wanted to nap with her, and she was afraid he would get sick from the exposure.
I had to laugh at the image of a dog with handkerchief and a thermometer.
One of the most famous zoonotic diseases, of course, is rabies. But there are many others: anthrax, Creutzfeldt-Jakob diseases (mad cow disease), Lyme disease, Cat Scratch Disease, Dengue fever, ebola, H1N1 flu, HIV, bubonic plague, ringworms, salmonella, toxoplasmosis, trichinosis, tularemia (rabbit fever, West Nile virus and yellow fever.There are diseases that spread between animals and humans. They are known as zoonotic diseases. There is some evidence that many diseases – including the common cold may have started out in animals and spread to humans including measles, smallpox, influenza, HIV and diphtheria.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases
estimates that about 60% of all human pathogens are zoonotic. An estimated 75% of newly emerging infectious diseases affecting humans originated in animals.
The problem of humans getting sick from contact with animals is a growing one as humans encroach on formerly wild spaces. Disease carrying animals such as possums and rats are common in urban areas. Even petting zoos and county fairs can be a source of exposure to zoonotic diseases.
This certainly doesn’t mean that we should avoid contact with animals. But it does suggest using common sense and basic hygiene following contact with animals, including:
- Washing your hands well with soap and hot water after playing with pets or touching animals at a petting zoo or fair.
- Being especially careful when picking up poop, emptying litter boxes or cleaning cages to avoid contact animal waste products. Keep hands covered with plastic bags or disposable gloves. Wash hands after coming back from a walk or carry antibacterial wash
- Making sure that your pet gets the recommended vaccinations on the recommended schedule.