see also:

• cat scratch disease
• toxoplasmosis

• pets often are prime contributors to allergies but they can also sometimes cause other illnesses and pet ownership should be considered when diagnoses are not clear
• fortunately in Australia, pets do not carry rabies and related lyssaviruses although bats can carry similar viruses but these are rarely kept as pets
• immunocompromised people are at particular risk for serious systemic infections from their pets
  • Pasteurella - see warning below
  • Bartonella encephalitis, neuroretinitis, and osteomyelitis
  • Toxoplasmosis neuroretinitis
  • parasites

• cat bites
  • these can cause major deep infections due to their long narrow teeth and the presence of Pasteurella bacteria and often need surgical debridement and intravenous antibiotics as well as tetanus coverage
  • 70-90% of healthy cats carry Pasteurella bacteria (most often Pasteurella multocida) in their mouths which can cause skin infection after a cat bite or if a cat licks an open wound or broken skin
  • 3–18% of all dog bites result in a wound infection, compared to 20–80% of cat bite infections
  • compared to dog bites, their longer narrower teeth pose a higher risk of osteomyelitis, tenosynovitis, and septic arthritis, as well as septic arthritis of damaged joints and joint prostheses
• cat scratches
  • these can result in either:
    • cellulitis
    • prolonged subacute illness due to cat scratch disease
• toxoplasmosis
  • mainly an issue for pregnant woman, young children or the immunocompromised
• cutaneous tinea infection
• intestinal worms:
  • parasites like roundworms (Toxocara cati) and hookworms can be transmitted via cat faeces, causing skin irritations or stomach pain
• gastroenteritis
  • Salmonella and Campylobacter live in pet faeces and can cause gastro
• ticks in Australia
  • can jump from pets to humans and cause local irritation or, in the case of the paralysis tick and young children, paralysis

• dog bites
  • these are much more common than cat bites and tend to cause a more traumatic injury which also is likely to needed surgical debridement, repair, intravenous antibiotics and tetanus cover
• 20-50% of dogs have Pasteurella bacteria (most often Pasteurella multocida) is often in their mouths which can cause skin infection after a dog bite or if a dog licks an open wound or broken skin
• cutaneous tinea infection
• gastroenteritis
  • Salmonella and Campylobacter live in pet faeces and can cause gastro
• intestinal parasites:
  • giardiasis mainly from drinking contaminated water
  • hookworm and roundworm
    • larvae from dog faeces in soil can penetrate human skin (hookworm) or cause tissue damage if ingested (roundworm)
  • hydatid disease
    • tapeworm eggs from dogs that can form cysts in human organs
• ticks in Australia
  • can jump from pets to humans and cause local irritation (eg. brown dog ticks or bush ticks) or, in the case of the paralysis tick and young children, paralysis

• venomous species are likely to give potentially lethal venomous bites
• other bites are likely to cause infections and will need care as for dog bites
• Salmonella gastroenteritis

• bird fancier's lung
  • allergic hypersensitivity pneumonitis usually associated most with pigeons, budgerigars, parrots, poultry (but may also come from certain small mammals kept as pets)
  • affects up to 20% of bird fanciers
• psittacosis
• bird flu / H5N1 / HPAI may rarely cause human infection
• Salmonella gastroenteritis from poultry eggs