Can dogs catch swine flu?

by Darren

It’s the latest scare to our health and it comes from pigs, but can swine flu affect canines? As working dogs can spend a lot of time around livestock such as pigs, and even domesticated dogs tend to meet pigs at such places as petting zoos and ice-cream farms, it’s worth asking ourselves whether dogs are susceptible to swine flu.

The answer is that so far no cases of dogs, or any other animal in fact, catching swine flu have been reported. Furthermore doctors believe that domesticated pets are immune to the disease that is currently sweeping the globe.

The reason that pets, and dogs in particular, are seemingly immune to swine flu is in the genes. The swine flu virus is able to affect humans, yet human viruses can’t affect dogs because the genetic makeup of dogs is very different to that of their masters.

It’s rare in fact that any type of animal virus is able to be passed onto humans, but this strain of swine flu has mutated so that it can infect humans.

So in short, there is no need to worry for now.