Nowadays, there are more and more families raising dogs. Everyone likes to play with dogs and have close contact with dogs. It is even found that many people let dogs lick their faces and kiss each other. So, are there bacteria from kissing dogs? Is it easy to get Toxoplasma gondii from kissing a dog?
In fact, rabies can not only be transmitted through bites. Rabies may also be transmitted when the saliva of a sick dog comes into contact with the mouth, mucous membranes or traumatized skin. So when people ask if it’s OK to kiss a dog, the editor still doesn’t recommend it.
The mortality rate of rabies is still very high. Once it develops, the fatality rate is as high as 100%. The number of rabies cases in China is second only to India. In the past three years, the epidemic situation has increased significantly in some areas, and the number of cases and deaths has continued to increase.
Rabies is also known as mad dog disease and hydrophobia. Wild animals are the main hosts of rabies virus, and both humans and animals can be infected. Rabies dogs are the main source of infection for humans, followed by cats. Wild animals such as wolves and foxes can also spread the disease. It is worth noting that dogs and other animals that appear healthy but actually carry the virus are more dangerous sources of infection because they can make people lose their vigilance.
Regarding rabies, pet owners usually only pay attention to preventive measures after bites and scratches, such as cleaning and disinfecting wounds, and injecting rabies vaccines. However, they often ignore the hidden dangers of close contact with pets.
Human rabies is basically infected through bites from animals that contain rabies virus in their saliva, because the virus cannot penetrate non-broken skin. But scratches or abrasions on the skin, or even being licked by a rabid animal, are dangerous. Dogs and other animals that contain rabies virus in their saliva can also cause infection by licking human mucous membranes, oral cavity, anus, and external genital mucosa and skin with their tongues.
There was an example of "one puppy, two lives": two young children in a rural county died of rabies. There were no rabid animals in the area, and the deceased had no experience of being bitten and scratched by dogs. After detailed investigation, it was found that the old lady pooped the child and let the same puppy lick the child's buttocks. Quarantine confirmed that the puppy was a virus-carrying dog. It was undoubtedly the rabies virus in the dog's saliva that invaded the child's anal mucosa and caused the disease.
If you also have pets at home, you can pamper and care for them, but you should not be too close. If your pet has a potential disease, then it is a small gain and you must be taken to the hospital for vaccination and quarantine on time.