cats passing infections to humans

Question
Expert:

Kate Tilmouth



Subject:

cat - human sickness



Question:

my cat is leaking a thick yellow discharge from its rear and the other day I touch my mouth and may have had some of that goo on my hand and I became very dizzy and am still having minor dizzy moments 2 days later.



Answer:

Sounds to me like your cat has an infection. In which case your cat definitely needs to see a vet as soon as possible before it gets any worse.

As for you well you may have picked up the infection too. My advice, go see your doctor to be on the safe side. The sooner both you and your cat are seen by a medical professional the quicker and easier it will be to avoid further sickness.

Hope you are both better soon

best wishes Kate
this was my initial question but the expert was not available for a follow-up
follow-up question is Should I go to the emergency room because I wont be able to see my regular doctor until 7-25-2012

Answer
Hi Don,

Typically, any enteric infection a cat has (that affecting the intestines) is going to cause intestinal/belly symptoms in the human as well, rather than dizziness. I would be surprised if your dizziness has anything to do with the fluid from your cat's rear end. However, that doesn't mean you should ignore your own symptoms until the 25th. If you're continuing to have dizziness, you may want to go to a walk-in clinic or emergency room. Tell them about the incident with the cat feces contact, just in case. But I'm sure they will evaluate you for many other things, which can include inner ear problems, low blood pressure and even mini-stroke.

Good luck!
Jessica