{"id":13773,"date":"2022-09-07T14:24:02","date_gmt":"2022-09-07T18:24:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/equestrianbootsandbridles.com\/?p=13773"},"modified":"2022-09-07T14:24:04","modified_gmt":"2022-09-07T18:24:04","slug":"can-humans-get-horse-lice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/equestrianbootsandbridles.com\/can-humans-get-horse-lice\/","title":{"rendered":"Can Humans Get Horse Lice?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The short answer to the question of “Can humans get horse lice?” is no, humans can’t get lice from horses.<\/strong> The species of louse that infest horses<\/a> is one that doesn’t thrive on humans. Therefore, there will be no lasting transfer of horse lice from a horse to a human. When you’re next to a horse that’s infested with horse lice, you may find a louse or two on your clothing or skin. Don’t panic! The horse louse can’t make its home on you, and you can safely smash the louse without the worry of bringing something home with you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why Horse Lice on Humans Doesn’t Happen<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Horses and humans are both mammals, both grow and shed skin cells and hair follicles, and both use the same kind of treatment for lice. However, there is no such thing as\u00a0horse lice on humans, and human lice won’t infest horses.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The major reason for this is the fact that horse lice and human lice have evolved differently from each other. The two species of horse lice have adapted to target horses and will only infest certain areas of a horse’s body. Meanwhile, human lice have evolved to infest body hair in the head and pubic regions and live on the skin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lice come in two types: biting and chewing. These types of lice are found in all species of lice, but horse lice are adapted to feeding on horses in ways that aren’t possible on a human. Horse lice simply can’t transfer their method of feeding to humans, and human lice don’t have the strength to attach themselves and feed on horses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Adaptation to a particular type of host is what has enabled lice to exclusively survive on different types of hosts. Lice can infest mammals, reptiles and birds, but they’ve evolved to specialize in the infestation of their host species.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Understanding the Difference Between Horse and Human Lice<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Humans play host to three types of lice, while horses are host to two types.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Horse lice species include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n