Health - never let your dog lick your face

Dogs are wonderful family pets and for every bit of love you show them they will return a thousand times over.

However, some of that love given to us by our pooches could be potentially life-threatening according to experts.

Dogs love to give their owners a ‘kiss’ by licking their faces. While some people consider this dirty and avoid it, there are plenty of dog owners out there that will happily take a kiss from their pet.

These affectionate dog lovers are putting their health at risk according to author and dog expert Marty Becker.

Those who believe the worse that can happen is getting a face full of bad dog breath are very wrong warned Becker.

He said: “All you have to do is look, watch, smell and you’ll realise that is not true.

“They raid the garbage can. You know, we give each other a peck on the cheek when we say hello, they give each other a peck on the rear end.”

John Oxford, professor of virology and bacteriology at the Queen Mary University in London, gave a stark warning of the dangers posed by allowing your dog to lick your face.

“It is not just what is carried in saliva. Dogs spend half their life with their noses in nasty corners or hovering over dog droppings so their muzzles are full of bacteria, viruses and germs of all sorts.”

One of the nastier organisms that is carried in the mouths of dogs is Capnocytophaga Canimorsus, which can cause as a very bad sepsis infection.

Ringworm is another possible disease your dog could pass on to you.

The bacteria MRSA is also present in dogs’ mouths and although it has no effect on them, it can be deadly if contracted by humans.

Dog lovers are also warned that the risk of infection from your pet is far higher for infants.

Experts warn that while it is great to bond and show affection with your dogs, it is strongly advised to keep a sensible distance between their mouths and your own.

Never let your dog lick your face – it could kill you!

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