# What diseases can you catch from a dog? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 27, 2003, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-diseases-can-you-catch-from-a-dog/171498 "2003-04-27T15:56:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Agback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/977dab/32.png) [@Agback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Agback)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2003, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-diseases-can-you-catch-from-a-dog/171498/1 "2003-04-27T15:56:32Z")
G’day People are always going on about the danger of catching a disease from dogs, which are supposed to be dirty (compared to cats, usually). Nevermind the folklore and old wive’s tales: What diseases or parasites have been credibly documented to be transmissible from dogs to humans? Regards, Agback ---
**Author:** ![Yeah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/dbc845/32.png) [@Yeah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yeah)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2003, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-diseases-can-you-catch-from-a-dog/171498/2 "2003-04-27T16:40:55Z")
Viruses: Rabies Parasites: Echinococcosis and Leishmaniasis (via sand flies), also probably ascariasis (round worms), trichiuriasis (whipworms), and Isospora belli infection Bacteria: Various bacteria that live harmlessly in the mouths of dogs can cause nasty infections when introduced under the skin of humans ---
**Author:** ![mipiace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb9ed0/32.png) [@mipiace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mipiace)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2003, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-diseases-can-you-catch-from-a-dog/171498/3 "2003-04-27T19:13:04Z")
All of the above, viruses, lyme, and an ameobic parasite that I have forgotten the name to…probably more but these are the ones that come to mind. ---
**Author:** ![jack\_ss](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c77e96/32.png) [@jack\_ss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jack_ss)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2003, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-diseases-can-you-catch-from-a-dog/171498/4 "2003-04-27T21:18:42Z")
Fleas. ---
**Author:** ![dwyr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dwyr/32/363_2.png) [@dwyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dwyr)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2003, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-diseases-can-you-catch-from-a-dog/171498/5 "2003-04-27T21:46:52Z")
[Leptospirosis](http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dbmd/diseaseinfo/leptospirosis_g.htm). ---
**Author:** ![Bearflag70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Bearflag70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bearflag70)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2003, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-diseases-can-you-catch-from-a-dog/171498/6 "2003-04-27T21:55:30Z")
I got pink eye from my dog once. ---
**Author:** ![kambuckta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/53a042/32.png) [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2003, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-diseases-can-you-catch-from-a-dog/171498/7 "2003-04-27T22:18:03Z")
Ringworm is one. I guess you can include tetanus from bites/deep scratches although the dog doesn’t ‘have’ the disease. And thanks **dwyr** for the leptospirosis link. I always thought you could only get it from kissing the budgie. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Agback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/977dab/32.png) [@Agback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Agback)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2003, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-diseases-can-you-catch-from-a-dog/171498/8 "2003-04-27T23:30:01Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by kambuckta \* > **Ringworm is one.** Indeed? Three doctors have told me that one can get ringworm from cats but not from dogs. Regards, Agback ---
**Author:** ![Agback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/977dab/32.png) [@Agback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Agback)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2003, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-diseases-can-you-catch-from-a-dog/171498/9 "2003-04-27T23:33:45Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by mipiace \* > \*\*All of the above, viruses, lyme, and an ameobic parasite that I have forgotten the name to…probably more but these are the ones that come to mind. \*\* “Viruses”? Which ones aside from rabies? I am surprised that Lyme disease is transmissible from dogs. Regards, Agback ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2003, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-diseases-can-you-catch-from-a-dog/171498/10 "2003-04-27T23:42:21Z")
In general, the longer a species has been domesticated the more shared diseases/parasites/etc. I think the other posts have pretty much covered all I know about. ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2003, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-diseases-can-you-catch-from-a-dog/171498/11 "2003-04-28T00:28:37Z")
Distemper in dogs is measles in humans. Strange that. ---
**Author:** ![MLS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MLS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MLS)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2003, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-diseases-can-you-catch-from-a-dog/171498/12 "2003-04-28T00:42:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Tuckerfan \* > \*\*Distemper in dogs is measles in humans. Strange that. \*\* Really? I had never heard that before. It’s the exact same organism? It seems to me that there have been distemper vaccines for animals for quite some time, but measles vaccine for people only recently. Or am I mis-remembering? ---
**Author:** ![Yeah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/dbc845/32.png) [@Yeah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yeah)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2003, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-diseases-can-you-catch-from-a-dog/171498/13 "2003-04-28T00:43:34Z")
“Distemper in dogs is measles in humans. Strange that.” Wrong. Different virus, same genus (Morbillivirus). ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2003, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-diseases-can-you-catch-from-a-dog/171498/14 "2003-04-28T00:48:56Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Yeah \* > \*\*“Distemper in dogs is measles in humans. Strange that.” > > Wrong. Different virus, same genus (Morbillivirus). \*\* Hmm, the way I recall it (it’s been some years since I read this), if a dog comes down with distemper, and you don’t have a measles vaccine, you can contract measles from the dog. ---
**Author:** ![HBby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/977dab/32.png) [@HBby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HBby)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2003, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-diseases-can-you-catch-from-a-dog/171498/15 "2003-04-28T02:58:02Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Agback \* > \*\*Indeed? Three doctors have told me that one can get ringworm from cats but not from dogs. > \*\* That’s strange that three doctors would tell you that, because they’re wrong. Ringworm is actually a fungus (or several types of fungus grouped together) that lives on the skin and can be caught by simply touching an infected area–whether it’s on a dog or cat. Heck, it’s so highly contagious, you can even catch it if you touch something the infected animal touched. It’s only called “ringworm” because it shows up sometimes as a red, rashy ring on the skin. ---
**Author:** ![HBby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/977dab/32.png) [@HBby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HBby)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2003, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-diseases-can-you-catch-from-a-dog/171498/16 "2003-04-28T03:08:56Z")
Oh, and to answer the OP’s question: [Click here](http://www.petsmart.com/cat/answers/natural_health/articles/article_6976.shtml) for a good article that lists some shared diseases, parasites and infections.