Put away the pet-vac and lint roller. A shaggy dog in the house may help prevent development of childhood asthma by boosting growth of gastro-intestinal bacteria and strengthening the immune system, according to new research.
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And its the bane of weekend hoovering - dog hair stuck to couch, carpet or cushions - that's good for your health.
A study by the University of California has found household dust in a house with a dog is a micro-ecosystem alive with microbial biodiversity. Dust and doghair have a ''distinct composition of bacterial communities'' that don't occur in pristine clean dogless homes.
When ingested or inhaled, this bacteria can colonise the digestive tract, improving immunity, and protecting against pathogens that cause asthma.
''The prevalence of asthma among children has been steadily increasing in westernised nations,'' University of California microbiologist Kei Fujimura said. The high rate of increase suggested environmental factors were likely to be important, and previous studies of children exposed to contact with farm animals suggested animals could provide protection against the development of allergies, Dr Fujimura said.
Exposure to a richer diversity of bacterial species could allow development of ''a balanced immune response.'' This exposure could also serve to strengthen a child's developing gastrointestinal tract. Lower bacterial diversity was associated with ''greater richness'' of allergenic fungi linked to lung inflammation and asthma.
The study's findings were presented last week at the annual conference of the American Society for Microbiology.
Scientists looked at whether the absence of a dog or cat affected microbial composition of house dust.
They found dust from homes with dogs was ''significantly richer and more diverse'' compared with dust from homes without pets. Cats were more likely to be exclusively indoor pets, which possibly explained why they had a less diverse dust count. Dogs are usually both indoor and outdoor pets, enabling ''introduction of environmental air, water, or soil-borne microbes into the home'' and increasing exposure to bacterial diversity, Dr Fujimura said.
And in Canberra, seven-year old Billy Margosis may offer some proof that daily exposure to dogs may boost or build resistance to childhood asthma.
His mother, Beverley Margosis, is a dog foster carer with ACT Foster and Rescue, an organisation which finds homes for rescued dogs. The family has three dogs - two Staffordshire terriers and a deerhound - and is currently fostering two rescued staghound-greyhound cross puppies, Bangers and Mash. ''Billy used to have an asthma puffer twice a day, but he doesn't need that any more. I don't know if that's because we've got dogs, but he's certainly improved since we got them,'' Mrs Margosis said.
