Man dies after his dog licked him and gave him an infection, health officials say

Dog parents should beware of allowing their pets to lick them after a healthy 63-year-old male died from simply being licked, European health officials reported.

The German male contracted flu-like symptoms after being licked by his dog weeks prior. Officials described the male as “healthy” before he was licked but experienced a high fever and labored breathing before going to the hospital.

Officials said the man had not been hospitalized, nor had he traveled abroad before developing symptoms. The lick caused the man to develop spots on his face, as well as soreness and abnormal sensations in his legs, the report said. After a few days in the hospital, his symptoms worsened and doctors had reached a diagnosis.

“He was found to be infected with C. canimorsus without a bite injury and did not demonstrate immunodeficiency or any other typical predisposition,” the report noted. “Despite extensive intensive care, his conditions deteriorated and he died from multiorgan failure.” The man died after 16 days in the hospital.

Should you contract flu-like symptoms after being licked by your dog, health officials encourage pet owners to “urgently seek medical advice when their symptoms exceed those of a simple viral infection,” per the report.

The type of bacteria, capnocytophaga canimorsus, is “completely normal flora of a dog’s mouth and usually doesn’t cause any sort of significant disease. However, in the wrong place, at the wrong time, in the wrong patient ... it can lead to severe infections — but very, very rarely,” said Dr. Stephen Cole, a lecturer in veterinary microbiology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine told CNN.