what bugs can you catch from your pets?

TheConversation: Household pets are often a great source of joy and have positive effects on our mental well-being. For most of us, this outweighs the risk of coming into contact with any bugs they may carry.
Household pets can host a number of organisms that cause parasitic, bacterial, fungal and viral diseases in humans. These animal-to-human diseases are known as zoonoses. Bites and scratches from pets can lead to diseases such as pasterurellosis and cat-scratch disease; while psittacosis or parrot fever is contracted when humans breathe in aerosolised droplets containing secretions from infected birds. But the most common zoonotic diseases come from parasites and bacteria that are transmitted through the gastrointestinal route – by touching the pet or litter tray and then your mouth. Don’t worry, the risk of catching these diseases can usually be mitigated by washing your hands.

Pets play an important role in developing healthy neighbourhoods

UWA: Pets play an important role in developing healthy neighbourhoods by helping their owners to meet people, make friends and even gain emotional and practical support from these friendships, according to researchers at The University of Western Australia. The research, published in PLOS One, found pet owners were significantly more likely to get to know people in their neighbourhood than non-pet owners.
Lead author Associate Professor Lisa Wood, from UWA’s School of Population Health, said previous research had revealed that strong social networks were good for mental and physical health and the latest study focused on the ability of pets to promote this.