What Is Zoonoses?

Knowing a nearby disease

Most people love pets because it gives them enough attention to lessen their stress or to convert their attention from severe loneliness, but having pets around us might cause zoonotic diseases. A zoonoses is a disease from animals passed to people, or people to animals in some cases.

Scary Common diseases around you

Our pets are usually being treated by a person as their baby. But because people are unaware that our pets can carry a zoonoses disease, it continues to spread in our community and even to countries. Here are some common diseases that can be transmitted from pets or animals to people, which can cause sickness, bacteria or virus, or can be fatal if not cured by proper medications:

1. Rabies is the most common zoonoses caused by a virus from pets, wild animals or even people. This is being transmitted, usually, by a “bite” from an infected hosts, animals or person. It can also be transmitted through contact of infected saliva to open wounds. Skunks, raccoons, fox, coyotes and bats are most common animals with rabies. While dogs and cats are exposed to rabies, by nature, because of contact to infected wildlife.
2. Leptospirosis is a disease caused by bacteria and can be transmitted from infected pets or animals to people through contact with their urine.
3. Salmonella, E. coli and Campylobacter is a bacteria that grows from raw foods and feed to animals. The disease can be transmitted through contact with infected food, even the commercial food can be contaminated due to wrong processing of infected raw foods.
4. Cat Scratch Disease is also very common zoonoses. And since, most people love cats, cat’s scratch disease caused by a bacteria is being transmitted through wound scratches that is contaminated with flea feces (from the nails of the cat) that causes the disease.
5. Parasites are organisms that live in a certain host and transmitted by food that is contaminated with these organisms. These diseases are most often seen to tropic or subtropic area or countries. Foods contaminated of infected parasites, such as cows and pigs, can transmit parasites to people easily through uncooked food, undercooked food, or improper handling of frozen foods that triggers more, the said parasites.

Remedy to avoid encountering a zoonoses disease

1. Proper hand washing before you eat or after an activity outside the house, and even after playing with your pets.
2. Proper washing of processed foods before cooking or eating (fruit and vegetables).
3. See a doctor when bitten by any pets or animals, and make sure to update your pets or animals vaccine.
4. Awareness of the cleanliness around you to avoid scavenger animals such as dog, cats, raccoons and others.
5. Do not feed wild animals or any animals that passes through your backyard so that they will not return to your house.

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