Pet owners should not let their dogs sleep in or on their bed, or even in the bedroom because of the risk of disease transmission, according to one of the country’s leading veterinary surgeons.

Fred Landeg, who is stepping down as the most senior government veterinary officer, said that people needed to be more aware that new and emerging diseases were just as likely to affect household pets as farm animals.

Many of these diseases may also be transmittable from animals to humans.

Dr Landeg, who is familiar for his TV appearances explaining the fight against Asian flu, foot-and-mouth, and bluetongue outbreaks, said that pet owners should also be vigilant about having pets in the kitchen.

“When you look at new and emerging diseases many are zootic and passable from animals to man. We can think recently of Sars, which came from animals and another disease, the Hendra virus, from bats,” he said. “As a veterinary surgeon I would never advise people to keep dogs in their bedroom.”

The comments from Dr Landeg, who has most recently been acting as Chief Veterinary Officer, follow research commissioned by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs identifying potential health risks from the daily interaction with dogs, of which 6.5 million are kept as pets in Britain.

Besides the risk of unknown exotic diseases, dogs also carry common food poisoning bugs: campylobacter and salmonella.

Some 10 per cent of dogs are thought to carry the superbug MRSA. Research by a team at Liverpool University Veterinary School showed that many dog owners appeared unaware of, or unconcerned about any health risks from their pet.

According to a survey of 260 households in a semi-rural town in the South Wirral, where most pets were labradors or Jack Russells, almost 20 per cent of the animals slept in the bedroom and 14 per cent on a person’s bed.

Dr Landeg’s warning also coincides with a review of pet travel rules on the Continent by the European Commission.

Under the current scheme some 100,000 dogs and cats a year are travelling into Britain from Europe and other rabies-free nations. However, from next year Britain may be forced to water down its tough controls to keep disease out of the country.

At present pets must visit a vet to be dewormed and deloused before returning to Britain. EU experts do not believe this tick and tapeworm treatment is necessary.

Dr Landeg said that efforts to keep the safeguards by government vets, who are currently compiling new research to underline their case, was not certain to succeed.

The Liverpool University research, published in The Veterinary Record, also found that 42 per cent of dogs slept in the kitchen and 79 per cent were fed in the kitchen. When dogs were left at home 24 per cent were kept in the kitchen.

Dr Landeg recognised that there were positive health benefits from owning a dog: people who walk dogs tend to be fitter and have lower blood pressure and people with dogs recover faster at home after an operation.

He said: “People live close to their animals but they should follow sensible hygiene procedures. It is about a balanced approach.”

However, dog lovers reacted angrily to the advice. Caroline Kisco, secretary of the Kennel Club, said: “The World Health Organisation states that ‘companion animals that are properly cared for bring immense benefits to their owner and are a danger to no one’.”

Dream companion

Rupert Andrews, 37, above, would never ban his dog from the bedroom, even if there were a new disease spreading from dogs to humans. Mr Andrews, who runs a small business in Winsford on Exmoor, said he would never be parted from Buster, his three-year-old Jack Russell.

“He sleeps next to me and comes everywhere with me in my truck,” he said. “If there were a new disease from dogs I would just ignore it, even if my vet told me my health was at risk. Buster is part of my life.”

Mr Andrews admitted that his girlfriend sometimes got “fed up” with his sleeping arrangements.

Explore Health News

• Swine flu

Times Recommends

• Times Christmas appeal: Letter from the Editor
• Conferences — what a waste of money
• Schools supremo learns a painful lesson