Please help - I am probabally worrying unnesseseraly but I have just been diagnosed with shingles. I know if I give a pregnant mun chicken pox from it it could harm her baby but I have a litter of pups due in 3 weeks. Does anyone know if I could pass my virus to my bitch carrying pups and would it harm them? I supose it is too late to do anything now anyway.

im pretty sure that dogs cant catch human cicken pox or shingles but  its worth checking with the vet just to be safe, i would give them a ring tomorrow

My 2 youngest girls have just been diagnosed with chicken pox,I asked the doctor about them giving it to someone else,as my mum is in a nursing home I did not want the girls to give it to my mum.The doctor told me you can give someone shingles from chicken pox,but you cannot catch shingles or chicken pox from someone with shingles,he said it is not contageous

Chickenpox is a highly contagious illness that is common in children. It causes an itching skin rash with blisters. The disease is caused by the varicella-zoster virus and usually runs its course without problems.

The viral infection is transferred from one person to another through direct contact with the broken chickenpox blisters and through airborne droplets.

The infectious period lasts from about three days before the rash appears until all the blisters have formed scabs.

The incubation period between being infected with chickenpox until the disease breaks out and symptoms appear is 10 to 20 days.

Shingles can affect adults and children, but is much more common in older people. It can not be triggered by contact with someone who has chickenpox. Shingles is contagious and may itself cause chickenpox. However, contact with a person with shingles or chickenpox cannot cause shingles.

HTH :)

not contageous!? i would disagree. i am a nurse and anyone with shingles is barrier nursed in a seperate cubicle and you have to wear gloves and apron to enter, it must be contageous!

It certainly is contagious - I waited until I was 31 to catch chickenpox and got it from someone with shingles! However, I've never heard of a dog catching either chickenpox or shingles but I'm no expert on the matter.

My dad has just had shingles and we were told it was contagious, you would be at risk if you've not had chickenpox but ok if you'd had it.

They said shingles is caused by the chickenpox virus that lies dormant in your spinal cord and is triggered by a weakness in your immune system.

None of our dogs got it tho, so I guess its not contagious to them :D

I can tell you its definatly not contagious to your dog or pups as we had a phone call at our vets the other day with someone with the same worries.
They assured the lady that her dog will be fine.

Bev

Ive had shingles and was told by my doctor to have 2 weeks off work because it is highly contagious

Contagious is different to infectious. Shingles is contagious (needing contact) - a person has to actually touch the blisters/scabs to catch it. It's not airborne, so simply breathing at someone won't pass it on. Chickenpox is infectious as well, and can be passed on through coughs and sneezes.

BUPA factsheet.

Bevb - felt silly ringing the vets - thanks for your post.

My docter said it is contagous to people that had not had chickenpots - only by skin contact though. My hubby is on red alert coz he's not had it before

Oh well, I'll get some more painkillers down me !

Its very contagious to other humans through contact but not dogs.