Veterinary Information Brief:
Superbugs: Is there a Human-Cat Connection?
Cornell Feline Health Center
March 3, 2006
A common bacterium called Staphylococcus aureus lives on the skin and in the noses of people and other animals, usually without consequence. But a certain form of the bacterium, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a "superbug" that is resistant to many commonly used antibiotics. MSRA is linked to over 125,000 human hospitalizations in the United States every year. (For more information, visit the Centers for Disease Control website on staph.)
Although MSRA infection in dogs and cats is rare, some studies indicate that transmission of the bacterium between people and pets is possible. A recent study from the Ontario Veterinary College in Canada is bound to raise concerns among cat lovers. The report, entitled "Suspected transmission of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus between domestic pets and humans in veterinary clinics and in the household," is scheduled to appear in an upcoming issue of the journal Veterinary Microbiology. The researchers found the same type of MRSA in five infected dogs and three infected cats as they found in the nasal passages of some of the people in close contact with the infected animals. The infected people remained healthy. However, write the researchers, the study results suggest that "MRSA can be transmitted between humans and animals many times within a household or veterinary clinic. and support previous concerns that pets could become household reservoirs of MRSA." Interestingly, other studies suggest that pets are most likely initially infected by people rather than vice versa.
Should cat lovers panic? Certainly not. But such studies reinforce a fact we've known for a long time: animals and people can transmit certain infectious diseases (called zoonotic diseases) to one another. Common sense and good hygiene will go a long way toward keeping you, your family, and your cat free of zoonotic diseases. Washing your hands before eating and after handling your cat or changing cat boxes, seeking immediate veterinary care for sick cats, and preventing cats from licking your face, food utensils, or plates will help ensure that, of all the things you share with your cat, bacteria is not one of them.
For additional information, see the brochure, "Zoonotic Disease: What Can I Catch from My Cat?" developed by the Cornell Feline Health Center and the American Association of Feline Practitioners.
Dr. James Richards
Director, Cornell Feline Health Center
Last Update 1 November 2006
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