Can You Get Sick From Your Dog?

We are surrounded everywhere with viruses and infections when we leave the house - bird flu, swine flu or stomach flu. These are the viruses we expect to encounter at the play field or at the office. In our own homes, we can get infected from our friends and family members but we don't expect our pets to infect us.

It is very possible for a pet owner to get an illness from their pet - there are some illness that are more common than others. There are a number of pet diseases that can get a human being and they are transmitted differently depending on the specific ailment. For example you can get roundworm parasite if you touch feces that are infected and you do not wash your hands well.

With hookworms it is a little different. The larvae has to penetrate the skin for you to get infected. With toxoplasmosis - it is very dangerous to pregnant women for it can cause birth defects. It is transmitted if you touch infected feces or if you handle raw meat without proper washing of your hands after.

Some of the illnesses can be transmitted from cats and dogs to human though body contact with their fur and skin. Ringworm is a fungal disease that is more of a skin infection than a worm. Other infections include: mite, Scabei - these infections can affect dogs, cats and people and its main sign is loss of hair and/or rash on the skin.

There are other dog ailments that have to be transmitted through a 3rd party - Lyme is a perfect example. A tick can bite an infected dog, then that trick may crawl around and bite a human.

There are some ailments that can be transmitted if the infected animal injured a person. For these category, there are fewer cases. An example is rabies. It is transmitted if you get a bite from a wild animal or a pet that has rabies. If you are bitten by such a dog, you should seek immediate medical help as it may result to death. There is vaccination for your pets too.

Knowledge is power and knowing the diseases you can get from your pet is very important.

Source:http://ezinearticles.com/?Can-You-Get-Sick-From-Your-Dog?&id=8952869