Zoonoses: What diseases can my pet transmit me?

What is a zoonosis?

There are more than seventy zoonoses, infectious or parasitic diseases found in animals that can contract in humans.

Some like fox disease are transmitted by wild animals. Others involve pets such as dogs, cats, rabbits and even birds. Viruses, bacteria, parasites or fungi, they can transmit up to 1415 pathogens.

How are these diseases transmitted?

In most cases, transmission is rare. It is carried out by various means: through a bite, a scratch, in contact with the excrement of the animal or simply through a caress.

Some diseases such as cat scratch disease are benign for healthy people. Others, such as rabies and hydatidosis, are serious and require urgent treatment.

Who are the people at risk?

The pathology is generally not serious except for people at risk: children under 5, pregnant women, people over 75, immunocompromised patients or patients with certain diseases such as AIDS or leukemia.

>> Discover in pictures the diseases transmitted by pets.

Read also :

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⋙ Lyme disease: 80% of misdiagnosed patients take antibiotics unnecessarily

⋙ Zombie deer disease: this terrifying disease would be transmissible to humans