Superbugs: not as super as they sound

By Lily Collins, Alumni 2019.

Turns out super bugs aren’t so super, especially not for our pets…

No, I’m not talking about the creepy crawly bugs you see around the house and in your garden. What I mean is the tiny bugs that invade your body. The ones that can often make you sick and more than that, make your furry friends sick too.

Dubbed ‘superbugs’, these bacteria invading our bodies are becoming resistant to most of the medications created to kill them which creates a huge problem for us. Although it’s relatively well documented in humans, we’re rapidly learning that our household pets play more of a role in the spread of this resistance than initially thought.

Pesky Pests

Superbugs evolve at a rapid rate due to their short life cycle, developing resistance much faster than we can develop effective antibiotics. Campaigns to limit the overuse of antibiotics and ensuring prescribed courses of medication are finished by humans were expected to decrease superbug resistance, but it really isn’t that simple.

Even now, when it seems people are much more aware of the issues surrounding their own misuse, they give little thought when it comes to their pets.

Antibiotic misuse isn’t isolated to humans. Superbugs and their resistance can move between animals, humans and the environment. In the past, the agricultural sector has been a huge problem, given the high animal density of the industry. As antibiotic resistance can be passed between animals and humans through the food chain and close interaction, scientists were worried about the implications for humans.

Black and White Dairy Cow’s Head by Jan Koetsier via Pexels

A few years down the track and with some effective initiatives in place, resistance in agriculture is decreasing. But the average individual has much closer contact with household pets than agricultural animals. And guess what? Our furry friends carry just as many superbugs as livestock, if not more.

Problem Pets

Pets have a high risk of becoming reservoirs for superbugs that can spill over into their owners. As it turns out, pet owners generally have a pretty good understanding of what superbugs are, but less so when it comes to resistance.

What it boils down to is people want their pet to get better, more than they want to reduce superbug resistance as an issue in the future. People are much more likely to withhold giving themselves treatment, but when it comes to pets (similarly to children), owners want antibiotics right away.

Close-up Photography of Fawn Pug Covered With Brown Cloth by Burst via Pexels

A key way we can reduce the increasing resistance of superbugs is through ‘One Health’. The ‘one health’ approach to healthcare acknowledges humans, animals and the environment are all connected and influence each other. From this approach, a range of more targeted campaigns have emerged with this concept at their centre.

Not all bugs need drugs!

“Not all bugs need drugs” is a currently circulating campaign introduced by Agriculture Victoria. The campaign is targeted at both the agriculture industry and pet owners with the aim to reduce superbug resistance amongst the animals we interact with.

Image by Marco Verch via Flickr

The campaign slogan emphasises that not every illness can be cured by antibiotics and people need to be aware of this. For pet owners, the campaign encourages keeping pets healthy, happy and vaccinated by practising good hygiene in the home and most importantly, following the advice of trained veterinarians.

So there you go. Maybe next time your dog licks your face, stop and think about the superbugs that could be flying towards you.