A Canadian man who was trying to save his dog has died from a rare bacteria after his dog bit him. The man's two-year-old huskie named Tinkerbell was experiencing a seizure, so he put his hand in her mouth to stop her from swallowing her tongue. The dog accidentally bit the 56-year-old Chelmsford, Sudbury, man on his thumb. Sylvain Boissonneault began to experience fever, sweating and achy joints a couple of days following the incident.

He consulted a virtual clinic, which told him he had the flu. Unfortunately, Tinkerbell was a carrier of the Capnocytophaga bacteria. While not fatal to the dogs or cats that carry it, the bacteria can be fatal to humans who become infected. According to the Canadian government,

C. canimorsus, which can be transmitted zoonotically, may cause sepsis and other severe infections (endocarditis, osteomyelitis, peritonitis) in immunocompromised patients and rarely in immunocompetent ones.

The bacteria can be transmitted to humans through bites, scratches, saliva or exposure to dogs or cat infected with C. canimorsus and C. cynodegmi.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, the symptoms of a Capnocytophaga infection are:

-Blisters around the bite wound within hours of the bite
-Redness, swelling, draining pus, or pain at the bite wound
-Fever
-Diarrhea and/or stomach pain
-Vomiting
-Headache and/or confusion
-Muscle or joint pain

After being bitten, most people who become ill will show symptoms within 3 to 5 days, but this can range anywhere from 1 to 14 days.

Boissonneault family was shocked by his death. His sister, Carolyn Chevrette, said,

He always had dogs, and they were his kids, alongside his real kids; these were his fur kids, he adored them. People are just shocked. Everybody that knows him is shocked that he passed from a dog bite.

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