This is a friends neighbour ,how sad and never knew the risks after having a splenectomy

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/11008590/Grandmother-dies-from-rare-infection-after-affectionate-lick-from-one-of-her-terriers.html

Just tragic - hospital weren't even aware of this risk by the sounds of it.

I gather she'd been on daily antibiotics since her operation, but for some reason they were ineffective against this infection. :-(

I never knew something like that was possible. I know so many people who say it's good to let dogs lick a cut as they think their siliver has antibiotic properties for some reason.

Her poor family they must be devastated. Will the family be keeping her dogs.

I am not sure if they will

When I was nipped last year and the skin was broken, I checked with the Dr about my tetanus being in date.

I was told I also needed antibiotics because dogs saliva carries a bacteria that can cause infection.

>I was told I also needed antibiotics because dogs saliva carries a bacteria that can cause infection.

And yet it would be that humans carry more!

Some years ago I was taken to hospital with a very bad dog bite.  I mentioned to the doc that the pain was unbearable.  He said be glad it wasn't a human bite then.  It appears we have dirtier mouths than dogs!

We do have dirtier mouths than dogs (and cats) because our teeth are rectangular and more tooth is in close contact with our other teeth so there are more bacteria friendly places in our mouths.  As per a seminar I attended at a medical convention and this speaker told us how his hospital deals with bites.

Human bites always thoroughly cleaned and antibiotic given.  Not part of the protocol is from the supposition that a person who bites other people probably has issues that include personal hygiene.  Or a lacking of.

Dog bites are mostly a scrape and if fresh just cleaned and no antibiotic given.  Some breeds do chomp and hold on, those might be treated as a human bite.  Dog bites are assessed on individual basis, some warrant more aggressive treatment.

Cat bites are serious.  Their teeth are like dogs' so their mouths don't harbour as much bacteria as humans' but their teeth are like little daggers and they tend to be chompers so the bacteria they do have goes deep into the skin, even into muscle, and then it's inside where it festers.  He said cat bites are always treated aggressively, strong cleaning solutions used and antibiotic.