GRANT COUNTY -- In 2015, a two-year-old Wisconsin boy nearly lost his life due to a mysterious illness that was caused by dog saliva -- the same illness that recently caused a West Bend man to have his limbs amputated.
Liam Young had his fingers and toes all amputated due to the bacteria Capnocytophaga entering his bloodstream causing an infection. After all the surgeries, Young has pushed through and is now five years old.
"It brought up a lot of emotions. It was just all too real for us," Liam's father said.
The father was also shocked to hear a similar story of a Wisconsin man having his arms and legs amputated after coming in contact with the same bacteria.
Dr. Silvia Munoz-Price, an Infectious Disease Specialist, said that the likelihood of this happening is rare.
"More than 99 percent of the people that have dogs will never have this issue. It's just chance," Munoz-Price said.
