In
2005, the WHO reported that 55,000 people died in Asia and Africa from rabies,
a disease for which dogs are the most important vector.
Citing
a 2008 study, the U.S. Center for Disease Control estimated in 2015 that 4.5
million people in the USA are bitten by dogs each year. A 2015 study estimated
that 1.8% of the U.S. population is bitten each year. In the 1980s and 1990s
the US averaged 17 fatalities per year, while in the 2000s this has increased
to 26. 77% of dog bites are from the pet of family or friends, and 50% of
attacks occur on the property of the dog's legal owner.
A
Colorado study found bites in children were less severe than bites in adults.
The incidence of dog bites in the US is 12.9 per 10,000 inhabitants, but for
boys aged 5 to 9, the incidence rate is 60.7 per 10,000. Moreover, children
have a much higher chance to be bitten in the face or neck. Sharp claws with
powerful muscles behind them can lacerate flesh in a scratch that can lead to
serious infections.
In
the UK between 2003 and 2004, there were 5,868 dog attacks on humans, resulting
in 5,770 working days lost in sick leave.
In
the United States, cats and dogs are a factor in more than 86,000 falls each
year. It has been estimated around 2% of dog-related injuries treated in UK
hospitals are domestic accidents. The same study found that while dog
involvement in road traffic accidents was difficult to quantify, dog-associated
road accidents involving injury more commonly involved two-wheeled vehicles.
Toxocara
canis (dog roundworm) eggs in dog feces can cause toxocariasis. In the United
States, about 10,000 cases of Toxocara infection are reported in humans each
year, and almost 14% of the U.S. population is infected. In Great Britain, 24%
of soil samples taken from public parks contained T. canis eggs. Untreated
toxocariasis can cause retinal damage and decreased vision. Dog feces can also
contain hookworms that cause cutaneous larva migrans in humans.
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