I have seen some people exchange non-stop kisses with their dogs and some people too hesitant and reluctant to kiss their dogs. This behaviour is due to the ignorance of facts that I would like clarify in this article.
By kissing your dog will probably not harm you; indeed, the danger may be greater to you dog. In general, face licking is probably far riskier for dogs to do to you than for you to do to them because they can catch tuberculosis from it! And since people don't always know they have TB in the earlier stages, they can transmit it to their dog without realizing it. They may cough, and have sputum on their lips and then the dog kisses or licks their mouth and catches itL. You should be careful with wrinkle -faced dogs. Kissing dogs with "smushed-in" faces, like Sharpeis, Pugs, Boston terriers etc can cause problems as these dogs "have a tendency to get Pseudomonas infections in their lip folds, and you can catch it from them.
You protect yourself by checking before you let your dog kiss you by sniffing to see if his face emits a strong smell -- which indicates he may have this infection.Incidentally, to stop a dog from kissing your face, blow into his face and firmly say "no" as soon as he gets into "position."
Dr. Miller points out you can catch cat scratch disease by kissing your dog. Dogs themselves never get sick from it but they can be carriers of it. Another common ailment you might get from kissing your dog, is strep throat, which has been reported among families that have dogs and children who trade kisses back and forth.
If you want to give your pooch a kiss, it may be safer than kissing another human. Marty Becker, author of "Chicken Soup for the Dog Owner's Soul," says many of the bacteria in the mouth of a dog are species specific, so it won't harm its owner. "So a staph or a strep for a human is not transmissible to a dog, if you were to kiss it, and vice versa."
The Bottom line is that you're more likely to get a serious illness from kissing a person than kissing a dog. But since dogs do transmit some germs. Keep the vaccines current, have a good external parasite control, good internal parasite control and you're good to go. And can kiss them all you want.
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