Cat Scratch Fever - How Your Cat Can Make You Sick

Cats are known to be the cleanest of the animals that people allow into their home, with an mind wired for careful grooming and sensibilities that seem to be most at rest in a well ordered home. As instinctively sanitary as cats are, however, they can still play host to a number of viruses, parasites and other ailments which are zoonotic diseases, afflictions that a human can catch from an animal. These afflictions generally don't amount to more than mild nuisance , which is why we still keep cats as pets, but knowing of the risks associated with caring for a cat is an ounce of prevention that is well worth it. Generally, people catch zoonotic diseases from their cats due to improper handling of soiled cat litter and other easily avoided mistakes.

Worms

Ugh. If you have a cat that has worms and do not follow basic sanitary procedures when cleaning the litter box, it's very possible to end up with some worms yourself. These are easy to treat once diagnosed, and you can bring a sample of your cat's waste to the vet for a quick examination. There's no need to call in the hazmat unit when cleaning the box, just wash your hands with soap and water afterwards and tell the kids to stick to their own sandbox.

Fleas & Ticks

Anyone who had an outdoor cat more than a decade ago knows all about dealing with the fleas that a strolling feline inevitably picks up. Thankfully, the veterinary product Frontline has made this problem considerably more manageable, but fleas can be a real battle to get rid of once they establish a foothold in your home. This is thanks in part to evolution in the fleas' defense mechanisms that makes them increasingly impervious to the more common insecticides. If you have a cat that is coming in and out throughout the seasons, it's important to keep an eye out for signs of fleas and put a stop to them as soon as they appear. Be aware that ticks can also be brought in with the cat; they won't breed in your house, but they can be a host to more serious disease. Checking your cat for ticks during the peak season is quiet easy as you will like feel the critter on the surface of the skin in the course of regular petting or grooming.

Ringworm

Ringworm is probably the most common ailment that cat owners pick up from their cat without realizing the culprit. Ringworm causes a itchy scaly patch on the skin surrounded by a red ring. Unfortunately, ringworm is caused by a fungus that has spores which quickly spread throughout the house. This can take a pretty serious cleaning regimen in order to get rid of, as well as some internal and external medicine to rid of the problem completely.

As you might of noticed, pretty much all of the zoonotic diseases that cats have to offer us are first picked up outside of the house. This is also the case for more serious problems like rabies . Although some cats simply can't deal with staying inside, owning an outdoor cat comes with a variety of risks that are worth considering, especially when raising a young kitten. If you can convince your cat(s) that life is actually pretty sweet inside, you'll most likely never deal with any zoonotic diseases.

Sources:

Kay, David. Home Remedies for Cats. Publications International:Lincolnwood, Illinois. 2005
http://www.vet.cornell.edu/fhc/brochures/ZoonoticDisease.html
http://www.cathealth.com/zoonoses.htm