Experts warn of diseases through pets

 As domesticating animals has become a hobby in households, experts have warned of its dangers to pet owners.

Many people in Qatar own pets and find comfort and happiness with the animals, but they can also pose a threat to their owners. These pets can pass on diseases in the absence of good hygiene and veterinary care.

Dr Ahmad Younis, a veterinarian, said there are diseases that can be transmitted to human beings from animals such as dogs, cats and monkeys. 

Certain types of worms, viruses, protozoa, bacteria and skin parasites can be transferred to humans when pet owners don’t take good care of the animals living with them in their homes.

When kept at home the beahviors of some of these animals is affected. “They become depressed and sometimes die because the natural environment of these animals is not the home and they have to move freely,” Dr Younis told the Arabic daily Al Watan.

Dr Batool Khalifa, a psychologist at Qatar University, said some people have animals as pets as a hobby but in some cases these animals help then fill the void in their lives such as those without children.

There are also people with high economic status who go over the top raising these animals for entertainment and sometimes for luxury, she said, adding there are people, who use gold chains, rings and expensive jewellery on their pets.

“This goes out of tradition and this is because many people like to imitate what they see in Western films, how rich families live,” she explained.

Source: The Peninsula | Photo: QL Flickr Group