Chow-chow and newborn babies

[cvirom]

Dear friends,

I am writing because the next month my wife will give birth and at home we have two chow-chows. Although the wormed every month and drink a syrup to boost the immune system, and the baby playard will have a protective blanket for the the chow-chows hair, several family members told us that where there are babies there can be no chow -chows because of the possibility of spreading disease.

Therefore, we ask you as experts: Are there diseases that are transmitted from the chow-chow to newborns?

Thanks for your time replying this message.

Best regards,

Carlos & Romina

[Boogie and Linda]

Do you live in the US? I have never heard of chows giving newborn diseases specifically. Infact, I don't think there are very many diseases that transmit from animals to humans or vice versa. If you are going to bring the baby outside (which eventually you will have to do) then the baby will be exposed to more diseases then. My grandson was raised with my chows and cat. Besides the people who think all chows are vicious and will maul your baby, I only heard stories about the cat being a danger and those weren't true either.

[cvirom]

Dear Boggy and Linda,

Thanks for your quick reply. We are writing from Peru, South America.

When we consulted with our doctor, he told us only cats have a parasite that can be dangerous for a pregnant woman and a newborn baby. Dogs has a parasite called Dipylidium caninum (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dipylidium_caninum), but it is very unlikely that it can infect a boy.

Other concern was the following: since the chows run across the house, leaving their hair in the floor and given a child crawls the first months, we thought maybe some infected hair could be swallowed by the baby. I know, maybe it is just myth and paranoia mostly, but this is our first baby, so we want to be sure on this kind of decissions.

Have a great weekend. Very best, C.

[Tippsy'smom]

I don't think there's anything that you have to worry about. Many babies have been around my chow girl(she loves to lick their toes. ) and they've NEVER gotten sick.

[Merlin]

Dogs lick the ground, other dogs, their genitials, they sniff poop and discover the world through their mouth. Unless you live in the concrete jungles of downtown, any dog exposued to a lawn or grass is subject to some kind of exposure to parasites, bacteria and virus. It doesn't matter what country you live in. Even healthy dogs can go through bouts of intestinal parasites, sniff up hookworms, or pinworms, accidently swallow tapeworm eggs, or even from time to time harbour external parasites as mites, ticks and fleas ( ALL of which themselves carry their own parasites), , so use good common sense when your baby is around your dogs, and you'll be fine. If your chows are healthy then you should have nothing to worry about. Check their coats from time to time, keep them clean and healthy, and make sure you do latrine duty outside around your property so that your environment is also clean all the time, and you'll be fine.