People with these conditions should speak with their doctors about how to safely interact with cats and dogs. 
 
 The Capnocytophaga germs that are common in dogs and cats can be spread to people through a bite or after close contact with dogs or cats. Infections are more often linked to dog bites or dog contact. 
 
 See the Preventing Dog Bites page for information on how to prevent dog bites and what to do if you are bitten, regardless of your health status. 
 
 Other Capnocytophaga germs can also be found in human mouths and can cause illness in some people who have the bacteria in their own mouth. People who have weak immune systems get this type of infection more often than healthy people. 
 
 Most reported infections occur in tissues connected to the mouth and throat, including: 
 
 Periodontal (gum) disease 
 
 Respiratory tract infections (infections of the mouth, nose, throat, and lungs) 
 
 Eye infections 
 
 In both types of infections—those that spread from animals or from oneself—the bacteria can enter the blood stream, which can lead to infection in various parts of the body. Infection can also cause the following: 
 
 Septicemia (blood infection) 
 
 Endocarditis (inflammation of the lining of the heart) 
 
 Abscesses (collections of pus in the tissue that cause redness and swelling) in various body tissues 
 
 Inflammation of the eyes, face, lymph nodes, or brain membranes 
 
 Most contact with dogs and cats does not lead to a Capnocytophaga infection or any illness, even after a bite. But, you should take precautions if you have contact with animals, especially if you have a condition that puts you at higher risk of infection. ||||| On June 27th 2018 the Manteufel family experienced a medical emergency when Greg started feeling ill, within hours of the onset of symptoms, Greg's body started to go into septic shock. Once Greg was admitted to the hospital, they were able to confirm the reason Greg was septic. He had somehow contracted the bacteria Capnocytophaga Canimorsus.This bacteria caused the sepsis in Greg's body that has completely changed not only Greg's life but his entire family's as well. Within days of being admitted to the hospital while still fighting for his life, Greg first lost both feet, after a second surgery to remove more damage on legs, they amputated thru both Knee caps. Surgery is scheduled to remove a portion of both hands as the damage from the sepsis is to extensive.Furthermore all areas of Greg's body and tissue was affected by the bacteria and the sepsis, the Drs say his nose will need extensive repairs, which means he will need plastic surgery to rebuild a new healthy nose. Greg is going to need several more surgeries, lots of healing time and his family by his side to get thru this life changing event.During this process while his family and friends are in panic and chaos Greg has held his head high and is taking all the news like a beast. He is so thankful to be alive today and is taking one day at a time.Capnocytophaga Canimorsus is a normal bacteria that grows in the mouth of up to 60% of dogs and 17% of cats. There have only been about 500 cases logged in the US and Canada since 1976 of this bacterial causing sepsis when no dog bite was found.Any help you can give the family will be greatly appreciated. Greg's recovery will be a very long process and he will need his family by his side, they will need help financially to be able to be with him during the coming months with surgeries as well as waiting to be fitted for leg and hand prosthesis which will allow him to become independent again. ||||| WARNING GRAPHIC IMAGES BELOW 
 
 A Wisconsin man has lost his hands and legs after he contracted a life-threatening bacterial infection from a dog. 
 
 Greg Manteufel loved riding his Harley motorcycle but might not be able to ride it again after his limbs had to be amputated after he got a blood infection which doctors believe he contracted after a dog licked him. 
 
 A friend of Manteufel’s created a GoFundMe account for him in which it described the motorcycle lover feeling ill on June 27. 
 
 “Within hours of the onset of symptoms, Greg’s body started to go into septic shock,” the fundraiser post read. “Once Greg was admitted to the hospital, they were able to confirm the reason Greg was septic.” 
 
 Manteufel had contracted a bacteria known as Capnocytophaga Canimorsus — a bacteria found in healthy dogs and cats that causes “severe sepsis and fatal septic shock, gangrene of the digits or extremities, high-grade bacteremia, meningitis, endocarditis, and eye infections” when a dog bite occurs, according to a study by the National Center for Biotechnology Information. 
 
 Greg Manteufel Courtesy Dawn Manteufel 
 
 The bacteria “hit him with a vengeance,” his wife, Dawn, told Fox 6 Now. 
 
 “Just bruising all over him,” she said, referring to the blood spots that began appearing all over his body. “Looked like somebody beat him up with a baseball bat.” 
 
 Days after he was admitted to the hospital, doctors amputated Manteufel’s feet. When more damage was sustained, he underwent a second surgery that amputated his legs through both of his kneecaps, according to his GoFundMe. 
 
 His hands — all of his fingers down to mid-palm — were also removed, with doctors telling his family his nose would need “extensive repairs” to rebuild it. 
 
 Greg Manteufel is a dog and Harley lover GoFundMe 
 
 Dawn told the Washington Post she was not sure which dog transmitted the bacteria to her husband was a dog lover and had been around eight dogs around the time he became ill. 
 
 “He loves dogs,” she told the newspaper. “He would touch any dog; he doesn’t care.” 
 
 While he may have lost his limbs, Dawn said Manteufel was determined to remain positive. 
 
 RELATED ARTICLE: Man Who Smelled So Bad a Plane Had to Make Emergency Landing Dies a Month Later of Necrosis 
 
 “He told the doctors, ‘Do what you have to do to keep me alive,'” Dawn said. “There’s no negativity from him so far… He said, ‘It is what it is, so we have to move forward.'” 
 
 “There’s no choice. We have no choice but to be positive and make the best of it,” she added. ||||| The full text of all Editor's Choice articles and summaries of every article are free without registration 
 
 The full text of Images in ... articles are free to registered users 
 
 Only fellows can access the full text of case reports (apart from Editor's Choice) - become a fellow today, or encourage your institution to, so that together we can grow and develop this resource ||||| A 48-year-old man from Wisconsin recently contracted a rare blood infection that led to the amputation of his legs and parts of his arms, according to news reports. And the most likely source of the devastating infection was his own dog. 
 
 Greg Manteufel went to the hospital with what he thought was the flu, local news outlet Fox 6 Now reported yesterday (July 30). But within a week, the doctors had to amputate both of his legs and, later, portions of his hands and forearms. The amputations were necessary after the infection caused Manteufel's blood pressure to drop drastically, which severely reduced blood flow to his limbs and led to tissue death. 
 
 Blood tests revealed that Manteufel's infection was caused by a bacterium called Capnocytophaga, according to Fox 6 Now. [11 Ways Your Beloved Pet May Make You Sick] 
 
 These bacteria are found in the mouths of cats and dogs, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Up to 74 percent of dogs and 57 percent of cats have Capnocytophaga, but the bacteria don't cause illness in dogs and cats, the CDC says. 
 
 In humans, however, it's a different story. In very rare cases, the bacteria can spread to humans through bites, scratches or close contact with cats and dogs. The people most at risk for this infection are those with weakened immune systems, according to the CDC. (It's unclear if Manteufel had a weakened immune system). 
 
 If a person becomes infected with Capnocytophaga, the bacteria can spread to the bloodstream and cause infections in various parts of the body, including a blood infection known as sepsis. Sepsis occurs when the immune system responds overwhelmingly to an infection, triggering body-wide inflammation and, potentially, organ failure. 
 
 Most people who get sick with the bacteria typically start experiencing symptoms within three to five days of becoming infected, but symptoms may occur anywhere from one to 14 days after infection, according to the CDC. Symptoms include blisters, redness, swelling, pus or pain around the animal bite location (if a bite was involved), fever, diarrhea, headache, vomiting and muscle or joint pain. 
 
 As in Manteufel's case, the infection can sometimes lead to gangrene, or tissue death, and require amputations to save the rest of the body. 
 
 Dr. Silvia Munoz-Price, an infectious-disease specialist with Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin told Fox 6 Now that the case is extremely rare. "More than 99 percent of the people that have dogs will never have this issue. It's just chance," she said. 
 
 Originally published on Live Science. ||||| Please enable Javascript to watch this video 
 
 WEST BEND -- A West Bend man contracted a blood infection after he was licked by a dog, and in an unusual set of circumstances, he needed multiple amputations. 
 
 One month ago, Greg Manteufel was a long way from a hospital bed. 
 
 "He loves riding his Harley," said Dawn Manteufel, Greg's wife. 
 
 Dawn Manteufel said her husband was perfectly healthy, but what they initially thought was the flu landed Greg in the emergency room. 
 
 "It hit him with a vengeance. Just bruising all over him. Looked like somebody beat him up with a baseball bat," said Dawn Manteufel. 
 
 She said life as they knew it changed forever. In late June, blood tests revealed an infection caused by the bacteria capnocytophaga. 
 
 "It took a week and they were taking his legs," said Dawn Manteufel. 
 
 The infection very likely entered Greg's system by something common -- getting licked by a dog, probably his own. 
 
 "This type of bacteria comes from the saliva of dogs. This infection in his blood triggered a very severe response on his body," said Dr. Silvia Munoz-Price, infectious disease specialist with Froedtert and the Medical College of Wisconsin. 
 
 That response caused Greg's blood pressure to drop and the circulation in his limbs to decrease rapidly. 
 
 "Sometimes it decreases so much that the arms and legs just die," said Dr. Munoz-Price. 
 
 Doctors were forced to amputate his limbs. 
 
 "We can't wrap our heads around it that all of the sudden, he's 48 years old and been around dogs all of his life... and this happens," said Dawn Manteufel. 
 
 Still, Dawn and Greg Manteufel are focusing on what wasn't taken away. 
 
 "That's all he kept saying to the doctors -- 'take what you need but keep me alive.' And they did it. Surprisingly enough, they did do it," said Dawn Manteufel. 
 
 Doctors say Greg's case is simply a fluke. 
 
 "More than 99 percent of the people that have dogs will never have this issue. It's just chance," said Dr. Munoz-Price. 
 
 The Manteufel family has created a GoFundMe.com account to raise money for prosthetic limbs for Greg. CLICK HERE to access that account.
– A Wisconsin man has lost his hands and legs after he likely received "the lick of death" from a dog, People reports. Per a GoFundMe created for Greg Manteufel, the 48-year-old house painter from West Bend started feeling sick on June 27; he and his family initially thought he had the flu, FOX6 notes. His symptoms soon worsened, however, and his wife, Dawn, rushed him to the ER, where they noticed his body was covered in bruises, "like somebody beat him up with a baseball bat," she says. Blood tests soon revealed the cause: Manteufel had gone into septic shock from the Capnocytophaga canimorsus bacteria, which Live Science notes is found in the mouths of nearly three-quarters of dogs and 57% of cats, though the animals themselves don't get sick from it. In humans, however, the bacteria can cause a blood infection, or sepsis, which can lead to organ failure and even death. Doctors had to amputate Manteufel's legs at the knees; he also lost his hands, and his nose has to be reconstructed. "He told the doctors, 'Do what you have to do to keep me alive,'" Dawn Manteufel tells the Washington Post. She adds they don't know which dog infected her husband: They counted eight dogs he'd been around at the time he fell sick, including his own. The Manteufels will have to sell their house and look for a one-story home now, and Greg Manteufel will no longer be able to work as a house painter or cruise on his Harley. Still, Dawn Manteufel says, "There's no negativity from him so far." A Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin doctor tells FOX6 what happened to Manteufel was a fluke and that "more than 99% of the people [who] have dogs will never have this issue." The GoFundMe for Manteufel has raised more than $28,000. (Snoozing with your pet can be risky.)