Pet dogs may be helping to spread the norovirus – known as the winter sickness bug, according to a British researcher.
Vet Sarah Caddy has reported evidence of the virus infecting dogs.
The findings might help to explain how the virus spreads throughout the winter. It causes major problems in hospitals because it is highly contagious and causes outbreaks of sickness and diarrhoea.
Dr Caddy, a junior research fellow at Cambridge University and practising vet, tested some 325 dogs.
She found evidence of immune responses to the virus in serum samples from about one seventh of the dogs. However there was no trace of it in stool samples.
Her findings have been published in the Journal of Clinical Microbiology.
She reports conducting laboratory studies showing the virus can bind to the cells of the canine gut.
She said: "As a small animal veterinarian, I am often asked by dog owners if they might be able to pass infections onto their dogs, or if their dogs are contagious to them.
"There are plenty of anecdotal cases of dogs and humans in the same household, having simultaneous gastroenteritis, but very little rigorous scientific research is conducted in this area.
"Until more definitive data is available, sensible hygiene precautions should be taken around pets, especially when gastroenteritis in either humans or dogs is present in a household."
Journal of Clinical Microbiology 1 April 205 [abstract]
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