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With flu season clinging on, and an influx of articles about dogs and swine flu, a natural question is, “Can dogs catch colds from humans?”
The answer: Generally, no. Research suggests that dogs do not catch human colds (aka rhinoviruses) because their genetics are not susceptible to the same strings of viruses as humans. However, dogs have their own virus strings, such as Kennel Cough—a highly contagious, cold-like dog virus that resonates high-density dog populations such as kennels and shelters—and even their own string of swine flu (H3N8).
Most diseases are species-specific, so dogs only spread germs among dogs, cats among cats, and humans among humans. There are rare exceptions, however, such as H1N1, which is a pig virus that mixed with a human virus and mutated into a human-to-human virus.
Though dogs and humans do not pass viruses back and forth to each other, they are susceptible to some of the same bacterial infections and parasites (ring worm, intestinal worm and rabies), which can sometimes lead to cold or flu-like symptoms. So it’s always good practice to wash your hands when cleaning up or dealing with animals.
Conclusion: You are probably safe if your dog sneaks in a lick on the face while either of you are suffering from a flu or cold.
“To date, there is no evidence of transmission of canine influenza virus from dogs to people and there has not been a single reported case of human infection with the canine influenza virus…Influenza viruses are constantly changing and it is possible for a virus to change so that it could infect humans and spread easily between humans”—The CDC Key Fact Sheet.
February Dog Tale of the Month – Tumalo Falls Snow Shoe
from: Debbie, Ruff Wear Product Tester and Hank (aka “The Professor)
location: Tumalo Falls, Oregon
Me, Hank, and six others set out on a 6 mile-plus snow shoeing and running adventure up the Tumalo Falls trails, testing the Ruff Wear Cloud Chaser™ jacket. I love the light weight and sleek look. It allows for fast running in cold weather.
I love the color of Hank’s Cloud Chaser™, but wish I would have gotten it in black—a more manly color. The reflective trim and light loop are awesome.
We tested the Cloud Chaser™ on snow packed trails with icy and crusty snow in parts–three miles on the trail and three miles on a snow covered road.
I was extremely pleased with the Cloud Chaser™. The fit is stellar, no rubbing or chafing. It definitely kept Hank more warm and comfortable on our 4-1/2 hour adventure. The Portland folks we ran with were really impressed with Hank’s gear. Most of them work for NIKE and they were really impressed with the high quality.
While we were at the falls, our Portland crew had a snack of fancy cheese and Kippers. Hank doesn’t normally get fed people food, but the Portlanders fed him the Kippers and he loved them. He liked the fancy can, too.
January Ruff Wear Featured Comment of the Month
From: Judy
Location: Sterling, Alaska
After trying 3-4 different types of booties, these (Ruff Wear Grip Trex™ boots) have worked the best for our Aussie. He’s highly active and LOVES bounding in the deep snow.
Started with the booties last year when we first got him as our winter was bitterly cold and he still wanted to play outside. Tried some fleece booties and they ice up due to his hot little pads. They were also very slippery on hard packed snow. It was a chore to take him on walks or play and keep him from trying to rip them off of his feet. I also had to try the coban to help keep them on. Tried some leather soled booties with more padding and an elastic “sock” that came up higher on the leg. These didn’t stay on for beans. Tried nylon booties (similar in make to the fleece ones) and had problems with the booties icing up from the heat of the dog’s pads. They also wouldn’t stay on. Then tried the ones with the “skins” on the soles, and came up higher on the leg. These stayed on for all of 1 minute once the boy got out the door.
This summer I bought these Ruffwear booties. Tried them with the first snow and once he got used to the hard sole, he LOVES them! I can now play fetch with him in the snow and he doesn’t stop to try and tear them off his feet (couldn’t do that with any other type). I can also take him on walks with them without him even skipping a beat. We’ve had the deep snow with the icky crusty layer on the top this season. He loves to punch through it to go exploring and we haven’t lost a bootie yet. I just have to make sure to tighten the velcro strap tight enough.
I’ve been super pleased with these booties so far this winter and am looking to buy another pair for our other new Aussie. They both are high energy and highly active dogs. We walk, run, ski, snowshoe and snowmachine with them. With the booties, the kids can play in the snow and the cold with us without freezing their pads or collecting the ice balls between them.
The vibram sole takes a little bit for the kids to get used to. It’s great entertainment the first time you put them on. But for us, when the snow gets hard-packed & icy, these give the kids more traction than any other bootie I’ve found. Even when I got the ones with the skins on the sole to stay on their feet, the kids slipped all over the place.
I would recommend these to anyone with highly active dogs!
January Dog Tale of the Month – 2-Day Broken Top Adventure
from: Lindsey, Product Designer and her dog Kaya
location: Broken Top, Central Oregon
On August 24th, 2009, Erik, Kaya and I set out to play for a few days on Broken Top, acomplex stratovolcano exposed by glacial erosion. Broken Top is spectacular, close to Bend, and has a fun jeep road leading directly to the base of the mountain… all good reasons to head out there!
- View of Broken Top from the trailhead
We didn’t really have a plan, but had food and gear for two days and one night out on the mountain. Being the ski junkies that we are, our primary goal was to get better acquainted with the area and scope some ski lines for next winter.
Broken Top doesn’t have any maintained trails, so you are pretty much on your own. We decided to head straight up the West ridge to check out some glaciers and the upper alpine area.
After about 3 hours of steep scree climbing and loose rock scrambling, we reached a saddle and had lunch. At this point, we discussed our options and decided to keep climbing until we found a suitable campsite. Plan B was to return to the saddle if we couldn’t find anything farther up.
- Kaya hanging out at lunch
We climbed for a few more hours, continuing to scramble up the steep scree slope. The humans were sliding back with every step, but Kaya was light on her paws and didn’t seem to mind the terrain.
- Kaya taking a break with South Sister in the background
- Mount Bachelor with Tumalo Mountain off to the left
Erik was climbing about 15 – 20 minutes ahead of Kaya and I. When it looked like he was getting quite close to the summit, he yelled down to us to stop climbing higher. Apparently the climbing got more technical and exposed, and he was worried about having the dog up there. So Kaya and I waited while he downclimbed back to our location. We enjoyed the view while we were waiting.
- The view across the bowl… check out those stripes!
Getting down was fun; now I can add scree sliding to my outdoor repertoire. We were basically in a controlled slide back down to the saddle. It reminded me quite a bit of sluff management, a technique for dealing with moving snow while skiing. We all got the hang of it pretty quickly and got used to the constant movement of the ground beneath our feet. Kaya made the humans look bad while she booked down with confidence and speed…
- Erik and Kaya headed back to the saddle
The handle on Kaya’s Palisades Pack™ was super helpful for getting her down off some of the larger rocks that we encountered on the way down. Kaya is totally fearless in general, but did seem to get a bit worried about hucking off the larger rocks into scree. Smart girl!
- About to pull a suitcase maneuver
Once we got back to the saddle, we set up camp. This was an incredible place to camp! Looking right, you could see South Sister’s East side and some of the Green Lakes. Looking left, you could see the lights of Bend in the distance. Looking up, the summit of Broken Top. It was spectacular!
- Camping up on the ridge, with Sparks lake in the distance
- Erik cooking breakfast, Kaya relaxing on her bed (spoiled dog!)
The next morning, we decided to head back down into the main bowl and cruise around in that area. The only way off the saddle was either to downlimb the way we came (not ideal) or head down the small bowl filled with snow just below our camp. Kaya, being the powder hound she is, ran right down the snow with total confidence. Erik carefully walked down the slope. I slid on my butt. It was the easiest descent of the trip!
Getting down into the main bowl was more crazy scree sliding and downclimbing. I probably dumped out my boots 10 times in about 1,000 vertical feet.
Once we were in the bowl, we got to enjoy the fabulous wildflowers growing along the streams fed from glacial runoff. The water was nice and cold, but not as delicious as I was hoping…
- Glacial stream with Broken Top in the background
- Kaya sniffing the breeze
After resting and rehydrating, we continued to wander along the streams toward Todd Lake. We did a big loop and finally ended up back at the trailhead, exhausted and happy.
Cabin fever got you itching for adventure? Don’t let the winter leave you down and leave your dog bored.
There’s plenty to do with your dog in the cold! In fact, most of the Ruff Wear Pack wait all year for the opportunity to take their dogs out on a cold-weather adventure. So grab your boots and coat (your dog’s too!), and give these great cold-weather adventures a try! Read the rest of this entry »
february comment of the month – alan and bodhi
February 1, 2010 in Cold Weather Activities, Playtime, What's New at Ruff Wear | Tags: customer comments, grip trex | by ruffwear | Leave a comment
From: Alan Bau
Location: Colorado Springs, CO
We spent Christmas Holiday in Santa Fe and our Labradoodle named “Bodhi” caught a lot of attention from literally hundreds. Everyone who saw us commented on the Bark’ n Boots; many asked where we purchased them (REI Inc.) and what brand they were, and even asked to photograph our dog. Bodhi brought many smiles to everyone.
I had purchased the Bark’ n Boots because we knew temperatures were going to be in the single digits overnight, and with an abundance of ice on the sidewalks, the city and local merchants were liberally de-icing the sidewalks with rock salt, sno-melt etc. The boots were perfect for protecting Bodhi’s paw pads from the cold temperatures and even harsher chemicals.
Thank you for your product.