Notably, the Spanish government and health officials already messed up here. Ramos had reported symptoms consistent with Ebola on multiple occasions before she was diagnosed. Before her diagnosis, she was laid up at home with a fever, spending time with her husband and Excalibur. This could have turned into a public health nightmare if she’d been out of the hospital longer or if people in her surrounding community had been exposed to her body fluids (as, for example, if she’d vomited from her illness, as happened to the Texas patient on his way to the hospital).
Meanwhile, Excalibur’s case became another opportunity to ding the Spanish government and appeal to the hearts of dog-lovers the world over.
The problem with Ebola and dogs is that we don’t know much about it. A 2005 study suggested that dogs who had eaten Ebola-infected animals could carry the virus asymptomatically, which would suggest that dogs exposed to the virus could pose a public health risk. Since pet owners handle body fluids from their animals on a pretty frequent basis, they’re especially at risk — how confident are you in the security of your poop baggie?
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