The epidemics of recent years have led to a wave of discussions about the dangers of humans being infected by animals - from swine and bird flu to Corona, each of these diseases has led to the mass killing of animals that were considered dangerous to humans due to the possibility that they would infect us.
But we tend to completely ignore the opposite possibility, which also exists - that humans transmit diseases to their pets.
We enlisted the help of Claude to expand on this danger.
Dr. Benjamin Anderson, who teaches in the College of Public Health and Health Professions at the University of Florida, explains that genetic differences between animals lead to most diseases affecting only certain species.
However, intense contact in homes means that pet owners can infect their cats and dogs.
Each infection of an animal by a human allows the viruses an opportunity to mutate and gain a foothold in new 'hosts'.
The phenomenon is called "reverse zoonosis", since the infection of humans by animals or an animal of one species by an animal of another species is called zoonosis (ie a disease transmitted between different zoological species).
Anderson's latest article documents a large number of viral, bacterial and fungal diseases that have passed from humans to their pets, including the coronavirus, influenza, tuberculosis and others.
A lot of sacrifice helps the transmission through body fluids, kisses, sleeping together and more.
Beyond the danger to the pet's health, reverse zoonosis also threatens public safety, since it risks infecting other animals, and from them to other humans.
Another factor contributing to the danger is the difficulty in tracking contagion between animals.
To reduce the threat, Anderson advises precautions – isolation from pets when owners are sick, limiting close contact, making sure to cover the face when coughing or sneezing, etc.
Still, he argues that larger animal experiments are needed to monitor reverse zoonosis risks hidden beneath the surface.
According to him, early detection of diseases that spread among animals may prevent future epidemics.
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