could dogs be transferring the virus?

A comment has been made about people being “anti dog” but it seems to me that they are heavily outnumbered on GN by those who are “pro dog.” I’m neutral on dogs. I could never harm an animal or tolerate anyone who did but dogs just don’t interest me. I ignore them accepting that we’re all different. I’m afraid I can only see the negative aspects of dog owning such as wet and chilly walks, muddy floors, expensive vets’ bills and being unable to do anything spontaneously without thinking about how it would affect the dog. We’re not all the same but we can coexist in harmony by agreeing to differ.

I haven't been stroking other people's dogs during this and I am avoiding people so they don't stroke mine

Dogs from Greece, Bulgaria or Romania Katie59. And some from further afield.
The animal charities are suffering due to the pandemic because they are lacking funds from donations and rehoming fees. Animal shelters are overcrowded.

Lillie

What about the all the rescue dogs arriving at Heathrow waiting to be adopted? Are they all carrying the virus and if so, are we all doomed?

Really, I didn’t realize we were importing rescue dogs, where from?.

I do know we are rescuing donkeys from overseas, North Africa?

What about the all the rescue dogs arriving at Heathrow waiting to be adopted? Are they all carrying the virus and if so, are we all doomed?

Katie59

In theory a dog or cat could be a carrier I’m sure, so if you have prolonged close contact with your pet keep him away from other pets. If you dry groom him wear a mask, wash your hands after and the risk will be minimal.

Katie59. That is ridiculous. I shall continue to receive sloppy kisses from my lovely old dog who isn’t at all well.

There are lots of people who do not like dogs for whatever reason, probably because they never grew up with a pet and a lot of them are on here.

Daisymae

People are catching it from other people. Read last week that handwashing is not that effective at control as it's mainly spread by airborne particles. Which could linger for hours. So I really wouldn't worry about the dogs.

Daisymae
Again absolutely. We don’t have a dog, or a cat any longer ? but I’ve never heard such nonsense as I sometimes hear on Gransnet. Covid19 is an airborne disease. People catch it by breathing in infected particles. I’ve been sceptical about all the hand washing and sanitising for a while. I believed it at first, I was a bit paranoid about catching it. Well I caught it, from being with an infected person, note, not a dog, and he caught it from being with an infected person, my mother (support bubble) and she caught it in hospital after being admitted after a fall. We all caught it from other people, not dogs, or from touching things in the supermarket, or from the post, or from any of the other ridiculous places people think they can catch it from.
You catch Covid from other people.

And I’ve never taken off my clothes and washed them just because I’ve been out. I wash my hands when I come in, that’s all.

MaizieD

The virus is rarely spread by touching infected surfaces. It is airborne and is predominately spread through breathing in infected droplets or aerosols. All the handwashing and sanitising is laudable and undoubtably hygenic, but the obsessive sanitising of every surface in sight is a step too far. It's most unlikely that enough of the virus could exist on a surface to cause infection.
I have a link to an article about this somewhere on my laptop. I'll post it later.

Just keep wearing a mask and don't walk behind anyone (i.e in the path of their aerosols) especially if they're coughing.

Absolutely. Totally agree with this Maizie.

Sorry to hear about your dog glammanana it's so hard isn't it. I think that because of the pandemic etc we were with our pets 24/7 and they were a comfort.

I believe Sago`s remark was tongue and cheek.

People are catching it from other people. Read last week that handwashing is not that effective at control as it's mainly spread by airborne particles. Which could linger for hours. So I really wouldn't worry about the dogs.

Sago I lost my beloved Poppy 6 weeks ago and the saying
The more people I meet the more I love my dog
has never been so true.

I have never caught anything from my dogs or cats in all the years I've owned them. Please don't give weight to this scaremongering else we'll have more abandoned pets

I’ve just spoken to someone who was shielding for a year but caught covid at Christmas. She said the only way she could have caught it was via her Tesco’s delivery as she is immune suppressed and has been very thorough about everything. Thankfully although she was quite poorly with it she could have been a lot worse. It is the uncertainty that is a worry.

Witzend there is a real vogue at the moment for wiping surfaces testing them for germs and then making press releases.

TV cleaning programmes do it and I have seen newspaper reports highlighting that all sorts of surfaces: kettle handles, bannisters etc etc have more dangerous pathogens on them than loo seats.

I am sure that sort of febrile obsession also fed into the fear of picking up COVID from surfaces.

Another reason for wearing gloves during the pandemic is that the constant handwashing and rubbing alcohol based sanitiser on your hands, plays merry hell with many people's skin. Certainly mine quickly became dry and uncomfortable, and then started to get red and cracked, so I took to wearing gloves when out; less handwashing and I would generously slaver sanitiser all over my gloves in a way I wouldn't on my bare skin.

Eleothan, out of interest we recently watched Contagion (about a lethal pandemic in case anyone doesn’t know) and a big thing was made in that film of the virus being spread by people touching surfaces.

Given that we were pretty much in uncharted waters at the beginning of this thing. presumably it was thought to be better on the safe side. We went through an early stage of even immersing all fruit and veg in a solution of Milton, but haven’t done that for ages now.

I seem to remember reading recently that Matt Hancock was influenced by that film.

I'm sick of all these scares and take no notice of any of the new warnings that come out.

Initially people were told that the virus could live on various smooth and hard surfaces for quite a long time, and people got really panicky about washing their food deliveries, post coming through the door, etc, etc.

Yesterday, I heard someone on the TV saying that they now believe it would be very unusual for someone to contract the virus from touching a contaminated surface.

I'm certainly not going to get neurotic about my dog or anybody else's dog.

Nope

I’m actually tempted to do that especially when I see cyclists and joggers spitting in areas where we walk our dog. I don’t do it because I’m too lazy to be honest but it does worry me. I also get annoyed with people that don’t control their dogs as the last thing I want to do at the moment is have to take my dog to the vets or myself to A&E.

In theory a dog or cat could be a carrier I’m sure, so if you have prolonged close contact with your pet keep him away from other pets. If you dry groom him wear a mask, wash your hands after and the risk will be minimal.

We have a member who washes her dogs feet after a walk. Now that really is over the top, and very strange.

Bear in mind, if dogs, or any other animal were seen as being a vector in spreading any dangerous disease, the government would soon introduce a culling programme. That is what happens when foot and mouth disease and various other diseases affect farm animals and poultry.

Sago's comment was statement of fact, not fuel for any fire.

A couple of years back, while walking a footpath in our village I was attacked by 2 bulldog type dogs that were clearly beyond the owners control. They had leads on, but they were in charge, the owner had to follow where they led as they were too strong for her.

I was 'fortunate' they were muzzled and I got away with a badly bruised arm caused by one dog when it cannoned into that arm. Had they not been muzzled I would have been badly mauled. Stupidly, I neither saw a doctor nor photographed my injuries.

Over the years, I have seen many good dog owners and enjoyed the company of their dogs, but I have seen too many families taking on dogs that are too big for their space or resources and when the dogs misbehave and become uncontrollable because of that, they end up being put down because no one wants to adopt a full grown poorly trained dog.

I have only been attacked by dogs once but I have suffered being in a house with uncontrolled dogs that frightened my children and threatened me.

Statements like that just add fuel to the fire for the anti-dog brigade, and there seems to far too many of them on here already!

I have no problem with Sago's remark.

I don't think we need to worry about dogs and transmission. The poor things have had a bad year with not as much fuss being made of them as it is.