Health Awareness Program

As many bird, dog, and cat owners know, animals are not only our pets but also a part of our families and it is important to ensure that all members of the family are healthy

It is for this reason that we have introduced out Health Awareness Program. This program was designed to educate pet owners and protect them against harmful organisms, known as zoonoses, that can be passed from animals to humans. Although, healthy persons can contact zoonotic diseases, the people most susceptible to these types of infections are those with suppressed immune system such as small children, the elderly and those with immune-suppressing illnesses.

How Are These Infections Spread?

There are numerous means by which these types of zoonotic infections can be transmitted from pets to humans. Direct transmission may be a result of scratches and/or bites (saliva) from infected animals, or through contact with urine and/or feces that may contain these harmful organisms. Although, only a small percentage of these types of infections do result from pet contact, it is important that we, as pet owners, familiarize ourselves with the potential risks that our loved ones can be exposed to.

When Should The Program Be Used?

The Health Awareness Program uses DNA technology to detect theses organisms. It is recommended that these tests be preformed upon the initial purchase or acquirement of any new pet, regardless of origin, that will be entering your home. This should be followed especially if the animal has been purchased at a pet store or pet shelter where poor hygiene, unsanitary conditions and crowded cages tend to be a factor. After your veterinarian completes this, periodic testing should be preformed depending on how often the pet is exposed to other outdoor animals or if the pet acquires any type of bite and/or scratch wounds from any strange animals.
It should also be suggested to those pet owners wishing to start a family, or to those who have small children already, that they perhaps test their animals for these pathogens, as most of these infections are particularly harmful to pregnant women (Toxoplasma gondii), and/or younger children who tend to play more with the animals (especially near their mouths, where many organisms harbour).

Three profiles exist in the Health Awareness program all of which incorporate the most common types of zoonotic infections specific to a particular species of animal. Some of these organisms are enteric pathogens, which means that they live in the intestines and are shed in the animal feces; thus they can easily infect all animals and/or persons that have contact with the animal. There is a profile available through your veterinarian that screens solely for the contagious organisms that are shed in the diarrhea of infected animals (e.g. Salmonella, being most common infectious agent). Ask your veterinarian about HealthGene's DNA Animal Diarrhea Profile.

*** Any positive results reported to your veterinarian should also immediately be brought to the attention of your family doctor ***

The DNA profiles are as follows: