A recent CDC expert commentary was recently published on “Animal Lovers and Zoonotic Diseases: 5 Things to Know“. Regular readers of Worms & Germs will find many of the points very familiar, but the article provides a nice summary of some of the recurring themes that arise when dealing with animals and people
Blastomycosis in dogs: Minnesota
There have been a few news reports about an apparent increased incidence of the fungal disease, blastomycosis, in dogs in Minnesota. Blastomycosis is an interesting disease with important “One Health” aspects. It’s caused by the fungus Blastomyces dermatitidis, that naturally lives in the soil in certain parts of the world. The risk is
Importation of dogs into the US: Operation Dog Catcher
Here’s an interesting article from the CDC about canine importation, the ways people try to avoid the rules and what’s being done to counteract these issues. Illogical, dangerous and/or illegal dog importation continues to be a problem in many countries, and many people unknowingly support it by assisting with importation or buying trafficked dogs.
Service, therapy and emotional support animal odds and ends, Part 2
Following up on the lighthearted rant about fake emotional support animals, it’s important to remember that animals can do great things in many situations. Dental offices weren’t really on my radar until Dr. Anne Gussgard from the UiT Arctic University of Norway contacted me about the work her team was doing with dog-assisted therapy in
Service, therapy and emotional support animal odds and ends, Part 1
I’ve written (ranted?) regularly about fake service dogs and disruptive emotional support animals. I’ve had the odd “you must hate animals” reply, but selfish people who slap a service dog vest on their pet so they can take it anywhere, just because they want to take it anywhere, cause problems for people who really need
Raw diet risks…Study results vs headlines
A recent study looked at human illness associated with raw pet food and has led to headlines such as “It is safe to feed raw pet foods.”
Did the study say that? No, it did not.
If you asked 100 people if they had a foodborne disease in the past year, I assume
Mysterious Norwegian dog illness
Media reports have described a number of Norwegian dogs with unknown intestinal disease, characterized by vomiting and diarrhea. Cases were first reported in Oslo, with subsequent reports in other towns – whether this indicates spread of disease or spread of awareness isn’t clear. Oslo could be the epicentre of the disease, but it could
Update: Pig ear treat / Salmonella outbreak
There’s nothing too surprising in the latest CDC update on the US outbreak of salmonellosis linked to pig ear treats. People continue to get sick, which is the frustrating aspect, since this has been a known issue for a while and has been communicated extensively.
At last report (yesterday), the total case number was
Asian Longhorned tick and the role of canine (and feline) surveillance
As the Asian Longhorned tick (Haemophysalis longicornis) continues to spread in the US, we wait for it to make an appearance in Canada. This “exotic tick” was introduced to the US from Asia possibly a while ago, but was only first detected in 2017 in New Jersey. It has since clearly established itself
Pig ear treat warning
As the US salmonellosis outbreak linked to contaminated pig ear treats continues, the FDA and CDC are now taking the additional step of advising people to avoid all pig ear treats and for retailers to stop selling them. As the investigation continues, links to treats imported from Argentina and Brazil have been made, but