Pets who lick themselves, especially their behinds, might then smear superbugs concealed in faeces throughout their owners deals with when they reveal love.
Researchers discovered 15% of dogs’ faeces included a drug resistant superbug.
The research study, performed in the UK and Portugal evaluated dogs from 100 families.
Warning to dog owners over ‘superbug’ health threat
Lead author of the research study, Dr Juliana Menezes, a specialist in veterinary science, cautioned: “Even prior to Covid, antibiotic resistance was among the most significant hazards to public health.
“It can make conditions like pneumonia, sepsis, urinary system and injury infections untreatable. Our findings enhance the requirement for individuals to practice good health around their animals and to minimize using unneeded prescription antibiotics in buddy animals and individuals.”
She included: “Risk aspects consist of kissing, licking the owner’s face or consuming from the owner’s plate. To minimize the spread of these germs within the household, it would be essential to minimize this close relationship in between the owners and their animals, and likewise to have higher health practices.
“Bearing in mind that the germs we studied are discovered colonising the intestinal system, the transmission happens through the faecal-oral path, so good health practices on the part of owners would help to minimize sharing, such as cleaning hands after gathering dog waste, or perhaps after cuddling them.”