WELLBEING

Is kissing your pet OK? Here’s what you’ll want to know

12 October, 2023 . 0

Love to shower your pet with kisses or let them lick your face? We delve into the risks of getting up close and personal with your four-legged friend.

More than two thirds of Australian households are home to at least one pet, and how we interact with our four-legged friends are changing.

“We’ve integrated dogs into our lives more in the last 20 years than we did in the previous 2000 years,” dog behaviour consultant and Bondi Behaviourist founder Ian Shivers says.

“We treat them more like family now than ever before.”

So, if you let your dog lick your face or share food off your plate, you’re probably not alone – but is it healthy?

Swinburne University of Technology Professor of Microbiology Enzo Palombo says pets are important for wellbeing, but we shouldn’t forget they’re animals.

“Animals can carry things that are not normally found on humans, and vice versa – we can transmit things to our pets too,” Prof Palombo says.

What are the health risks of kissing your pet?

More than 70 disease-causing organisms that our pets can carry are transmissible to people – among them, Capnocytophaga bacteria, which live in the mouths of dogs and cats.

While most people won’t get sick after contact, in rare cases, Capnocytophaga can cause sepsis.

It even claimed someone’s life in Western Australia earlier this year.

But before you completely ban your dog from licking you, Prof Palombo has this advice:

“In this area, we talk about hazards and we talk about risk; a hazard is something which can cause a problem and the risk quantifies how much of a problem it really is,” Prof Palombo says.

“In terms of getting sick from, say, letting your dog lick you, I’d say the hazard is there but the risk is low in most cases.

“That said, like all infectious diseases, there are members of our community who are more vulnerable than others, including people with underlying health conditions and those who are immunocompromised.”

So kissing your pet is a little risky – should you let your pet lick you?

Ian says thinking you shouldn’t let your dog in the bedroom or on the furniture, in line with the dominance theory which has since been disproven, is outdated – and the same goes for licking.

“It’s neither right nor wrong, but understanding why your dog is licking is important,” he says.

Ian explains there are a few reasons why dogs lick, including to seek information.

“A rational dog whose brain is working effectively is going to lick to gather information, and stop after two or three licks,” he says.

“But a dog who’s overstimulated, concerned or overwhelmed may continue licking, which can be a sign they’re struggling in that moment.”

Ian shares how this can present when a new baby is brought home.

“A dog hovering around and perhaps trying to lick the baby a lot will often be mistaken as ‘the dog really loves the baby’,” he says.

“But it can actually be a sign of hyper-attachment – the dog isn’t able to rationalise baby’s arrival so, instead, constantly asks for feedback by staying close and trying to lick, because there’s an underlying insecurity about this change in the dog’s life.”

Personal hygiene and your pet

If you’re concerned about the health risks that a close encounter with a pet may present, Prof Palombo says there’s a solution.

“Wash your hands – it’s as simple as that,” he says.

“Do it after you’ve played with your pet or any time before you handle food; or, if your dog licks your face, wash your face.”

Even allowing your dog to lick your bowl for leftovers isn’t too problematic.

“I wouldn’t recommend putting more food in it straightaway, but once you’ve washed the bowl with hot soapy water, it’s safe to use again,” Prof Palombo says.

Read more on living well with pets:

Written by Karen Fittall.