The family of a woman who died earlier this summer are saying that she passed away after contracted an extremely rare infection from a kind of bacteria found in some dogs’ saliva.

Sharon Larson, 58, first began to feel sick on June 20, one day after her dog bit her. Her husband, Daniel said that by the next day, Sharon felt so weak that she could not even hold a glass of water, and she was rushed to the emergency room.

Sharon ended up being treated at the Wheaton Franciscan hospital in Franklin, Wisconsin. Daniel said that soon after she arrived, doctors found that her kidneys were failing. On June 22, Sharon tested positive for capnocytophaga canimorsus, common bacteria found in the mouths of dogs and cats. Though it’s common for pets to have this bacteria in their saliva, it’s rare that they infect humans.

Doctors did everything they could to save Sharon, but she passed away the next afternoon. Her family says that she was “amazingly kind” and caring.

“Her smile will live on through her five grandkids and a sixth on the way,” said her adult daughter, Stacy Larson-Hruzek.

This occurred the very same month that Wisconsin resident Greg Manteufel had to have his limbs amputated due to the same infection that killed Sharon. Though he lived about two miles from her, experts say that serious illness from capnocytophaga is extremely rare.

“The risk posed by a dog is really low,” said Scott Weese, a professor at the Ontario Veterinary College’s Centre for Public Health and Zoonoses. “Most dogs are carrying this bug in their mouth, but few people get sick.”

It’s incredibly sad that being a dog lover cost Sharon her life. Please keep her family in your thoughts and prayers, and SHARE this story so your friends and family can see this as well!