Man's legs, hands amputated after a dog's lick: 'He still loves his dog'

Ashley May | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption Wisconsin man contracts rare infection from dog Surgeons have amputated the legs and hands of a Wisconsin man who contracted a rare blood infection from a dog lick. Greg Manteufel remains hospitalized at a Milwaukee-area hospital. (Aug. 3)

Greg Manteufel has loved dogs all his life, but a dog's kiss nearly killed him in June. Because of an infection caused by contact with dog saliva, Manteufel's legs and hands were amputated and more than a month later, he's still hospitalized awaiting more surgeries.

It started with flu-like symptoms. Manteufel's wife Dawn said when she came home from working third shift June 26, her husband told her he'd been throwing up and his legs ached. She recommended water and Tylenol.

A day later, Manteufel's 25-year-old son Michael heard his father stirring early in the morning, speaking gibberish. He could barely walk and had diarrhea. As Manteufel, 48, attempted to reassure his son, the only person home at the time, Michael called family members. Manteufel was taken to a hospital near his West Bend, Wisconsin, home.

Within minutes, bruises and blemishes appeared on his face, chest, legs, stomach and back, Dawn said. The hospital determined a life-threatening sepsis infection had set in and they didn't have the equipment needed to handle his bacteria-packed blood, Dawn said. Manteufel was sent to a hospital about 30 miles away from home for antibiotics and surgery.

Doctors determined his leg muscles and hands were dying. They amputated his legs below the knees and removed the hands in a following surgery, after exhausting options to save them. Nearly a quarter of his nose will be removed in an upcoming surgery.

The cause of all of this: Bacteria from dog saliva that caused a rare blood infection, doctors told them.

Capnocytophaga canimorsus is a bacterial pathogen found in healthy dogs and cats. There are more than 700 different types of bacteria in a dog's mouth. While rare, people have contracted this bacteria, usually through dog bites, and died.

Licking can also prompt infection, as was the likely case of a 70-year-old greyhound owner who made a full recovery after two weeks of intensive care, according to a 2016 BMJ medical report. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes infections are more likely to occur in adults 40 and older, and risk factors include alcoholism and weak immune system (often related to cancer or other infections). Another key risk factors is not having a spleen.

Infections caused by capnocytophaga are not nationally notifiable, meaning cases are not routinely reported to the CDC. But, MicrobeNet, CDC’s online reference library, has received reports of 12 positive cases in the past year, said CDC press officer Kate Fowlie.

Doctors suspect Manteufel, who was not bitten or scratched, picked up the bacteria through a dog lick and then touched his mouth or eye, Dawn said.

More: Exactly how gross are dog kisses?

To date, he's had five surgeries, and more have been scheduled.

Warning: Graphic photo of Manteufel's skin and amputations below.

"If I wasn’t living it, and someone told me this story, I wouldn’t believe it either," Dawn said. "But I’m living it."

Manteufel, a painter who enjoyed riding his motorcycle, was otherwise healthy days before the symptoms set in, Dawn said. He's known for carrying a bottle of sanitizer in his truck and wiping down grocery cart handles before shopping.

He's also been around dogs for years. He and his wife have a pit bull named Ellie. She's 8-years-old and they've had her since she was a puppy. She's part of the family. It's unclear if Ellie's saliva is to blame.

Casey Barton Behravesh, a veterinary epidemiologist with the CDC, said tests for the bacteria are available, but might not be totally useful for this kind of diagnosis. Tests for the bacteria, which is common in the mouths of up to 74 percent dogs and up to 57 percent cats, could be negative one day but positive another, depending on environmental factors, she said.

To avoid risk of infection from pets, Barton Behravesh recommends regularly washing hands after contact, closely supervising children around pets and regularly taking your pet to a veterinarian.

Days before Manteufel's symptoms, he was in contact with several dogs: A stray dog that came around while he was on location painting, two dogs at a graduation party and four dogs at a birthday party.

Doctors told Dawn the odds of him contracting the infection from a dog again are next to none. So, they plan to keep Ellie.

"It was some crazy fluke type accident," she said.

Life won't be the same though. Whenever Manteufel is discharged from the hospital, he will move into his parent's house as Dawn prepares their home for sale. Unable to paint, he is out of work.

Right now, Manteufel is working with therapists to put on a T-shirt by himself again.

Dawn said he's determined to move past this and feels fortunate to be alive.

"He still loves his dog and he plans on loving his dog," she said.

A cousin of the family has set up a GoFundMe to help cover medical costs for the family.

More: Don’t shave your legs and other tips to avoid infections from a pedicure or manicure

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