Dogs: The health risks associated with your chosen pets.

 

Ranti Ogunrinde.
Dogs are friendly. They crave for human company. It is so evident in their social behaviour when they come in contact with or perceive the presence of a familiar human.

They offer comfort and companionship which leave people with no choice but to love them. Dogs can offer a wide range of health benefits to human.

Infact, 'studies show that having canine companion is linked to lower blood pressure, reduced cholesterol and fewer heart attacks'.

But while the canine friends are loyal and submissive, they also have the potential to cause some life threatening infections such as rabies.

As people consider their pets to be a member of their family, this article is to remind dog owners about the health risks associated with the ownership of the people's most-cherished animal.

Recent incidents of dog bites affirmed that dogs have their progressional behaviours which could be misunderstood by the owners.

A recently witnessed incident was about a naughty and lovely mongrel, pluto.

Pluto is less aggressive. Not an attack dog but loud. She barks and growls at intruders or strangers. Despite these, never had any history of bites.

Drama occured one evening when pluto charged and bit the owner's child. Pluto was eating when the ignorant 5 year old boy approached to pet her. Threatened by his presence, pluto groaned, a warning sign. The boy continued and all of a sudden, pluto snapped, DOG BITE!

Everyone was shocked and clueless. They could not understand why a nice dog would bite her owner. The floor was filled with drops of blood.

The incident sparked an agitated disturbance among the residents apparently because of some frightening stories about dog bites. It took the intervention of health care providers before the bleeding and the pains could stop.

Health authorities said dog bites could result into emergency admission because the infections are almost always fatal if not given immediate attention as dogs are the main source of human rabies.

According to the World health Organization, WHO, tens of thousands of people die from rabies infections every year, with most deaths occurring in Asia and Africa, adding that children between the ages 5 to 14 are frequent victims.

It says rabies infections have been reported in 150 countries on every continent except antartica.

The body stated that the initial symptoms of rabies are thesame regardless of the form that eventually develops.

The initial symptoms include headache, fatigue, fever with pain and unusual or unexplained tingling, pricking or burning sensation at the wound site.

The Organisation explained that the virus responsible for rabies thereafter spreads through the central nervous system and develop into one of the two forms of the disease: furious rabies or paralytic rabies.

"Rabies can be prevented by vaccinating the dog. It is the most cost-effective strategy for preventing rabies in people", WHO said.

The Centre for Disease Control, CDC, advised that anyone bitten by a dog should seek immediate medical attention and have the animal detained for examination.

A US based non profit Organisation, Doggone safe, informed that dogs do not bite 'out of blue' as there are always warning signs before a bite occurs.

It highlighted possible reasons why one could fall a victim of dog bite to include the fact that the dog may have been subjected to too many stressors or protecting a possession, food or water dish or puppies or that someone has done something to provoke or frighten the dog.

It is also advised that people should be aware of their enviroments while jogging or running and avoid cycling past a dog as it may result in a chase.

A US specialist, Dr. Kristy Conn, said that it is important to understand that any dog has the capacity to bite hence the need to educate people and their children on how to avoid dog bites.


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