| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| carlb1981 |
Posted - 31/05/2012 : 15:56:43
Thought id ask this question since my partner has been filled with loads of scare stories from the internet by her mum, what risks are there with salmonella I have a one year old boy and six year old girl obviously I won't be letting my little boy touch or handle Marty as he would do more harm to him than Marty would to my lb and my daughter if I let her handle him knows she has to clean her hands before and after but here is my dilemma my partner tells me to put my clothes in wash after handling Marty and I have to put an old duvet cover down if I want to let him crawl around so my son can't catch anything is she just over reacting to the info from her mum or can kids catch salmonella from clothes worn when handling snakes as well as from carpets and flooring/furniture?
Thanks Carl |
| 13 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| ppl_clectr |
Posted - 01/06/2012 : 16:19:18
The majority of Salmonella from reptiles comes from Turtles, actually. Good hand washing practices are a great idea, no matter what animal you are handling, both for the animal and for the people. A lot of animals are oblivious to their feces...enough said! The alcohol based hand sanitizer actually does a better job of killing germs than traditional washing, unless hands are visibly soiled...this comes from Occupational Health at my hospital. |
| Kelfezond |
Posted - 01/06/2012 : 13:44:55
I hate that story lol |
| n/a |
Posted - 01/06/2012 : 13:32:13
quote:
Originally posted by Lincsfox
Anyone heard the one about the boa lying by it's owner on the bed to "size him up" lol
 !!!!
No!
Really?????!!!!! |
| Lincsfox |
Posted - 01/06/2012 : 13:09:31
I've had this in the past when I got my Akita, I was frowned upon as they are a "dangerous dog" and are used for hunting lions and all sorts of wierd and wonderful accounts of how they'd ripped children apart like dolls. The truth is that in Japan they were used as nanny dogs, keeping watch over the children whilst the parents were in the fields, they were given this role due to their gentle but protective nature. As for the hunting lions thing, it's laughable, they'd have no chance, and the myth actually comes from the fact that they were used to TRACK lions.
Anyway, I digress (as I tend to) but my point is that if you look hard enough on the internet you will find "facts" to support just about anything, no matter how ludicrus. maybe it is worth doing some online research with your partner to give her a balanced view.
Anyone heard the one about the boa lying by it's owner on the bed to "size him up" lol |
| acd1984 |
Posted - 31/05/2012 : 19:59:09
i say let kids handle snakes but just make sure they wash their hands after. simple. but i do agree that there is alot of scare mongering where reptiles are involved |
| Kelfezond |
Posted - 31/05/2012 : 19:08:23
quote:
Originally posted by carlb1981
yeah my partner was fine until her mum fed her info she found online, she found somewhere that 7% percent of cases were caused by reptiles
7% sounds WAY too high to me, sound like typical APA fear mongering |
| n/a |
Posted - 31/05/2012 : 17:18:58
quote:
Originally posted by Jayde
(I would like to say that I do realise the whole fear thing sounds very hypocritical considering what the speech i wrote about regarding the moths, nut thats my own problem that started when I was about 16 or 17.!)
Ah there's a difference between a phobia (which can be very hard to overcome) and putting a fear into a child's mind.
Yeah good point, Carl, about the popularity of reptile encounter businesses for entertainment at childrens' parties - yes, if there was such a huge risk of salmonella from the reps, these wouldn't be allowed. |
| carlb1981 |
Posted - 31/05/2012 : 17:12:40
yeah my partner was fine until her mum fed her info she found online, she found somewhere that 7% percent of cases were caused by reptiles and in young children were more at risk which is understandable since toddlers stick everything in there mouths which is why my 1 year old wont be coming into contact whith marty until hes old enough to understand but as far as taking my clothes off and putting them in wash i think shes going over the top as long as i wash my hands and keep on top of martys viv so hes not crawling over his own mess i cant see there being a problem, if that was the case the people who do kids parties that take all sorts of animals including reptiles would not be allowed by the government in this day and age where the health and safety bods like to put a stop to almost anything that carries a slight risk of scratching yourself lol |
| Jayde |
Posted - 31/05/2012 : 16:56:49
(I would like to say that I do realise the whole fear thing sounds very hypocritical considering what the speech i wrote about regarding the moths, nut thats my own problem that started when I was about 16 or 17.!) |
| Jayde |
Posted - 31/05/2012 : 16:44:52
Children are far more likely to catch something from putting their toys and their own hands in their mouths than snakes.
Unfortunately there have been a rare few cases where people have caught salmonella from their exotic pets, and in even rarer cases, caused death.
It's very hard to tell if your pet will have salmonella. Almost all reptiles and mamals carry one of over 500 sub-division types of salmonella. Many of the strains of slamonella cannot cross between species, so the liklihood of catching it from your exotic pet is a very low percentage. The salmonella is only present in the gut, and can only be spread via ingestion. So, IF it is present, the only time you come into contact with it, is via faeces. As long as no ones is eating your exotic pets stool, or any objects in the vivarium that have been defecated, then it's a very unlikley event to happen. As long as people coming into contact with your pet know to wash their hands beofre and after handling, and/or use antibacterial gel, then know problems will be encountered regarding salmonella.
It's also useful to note, that eggs can become contaminated with salmonella as soon as it passes the females cloaca, meaning even long term captive bred animals are in the running to potentially carry a strain of the bacteria, it's not something that comes as a byproduct of ill-keep of the animal, like many anti-reptilist assume, believing it to be a disease.
I recently took all 4 of my snakes to the nursery where alot of my young referal cases attend, and all 25 children handled the snakes and pieces of decor and equipment from their vivariums during an educational show and tell for their pets and vets week. Before I brought the snakes out, I had a 5 minutes talk with them about safety and cleanliness while we have the snakes around, and each child (aged 2-5) followed the rules wonderfully. In situations regarding the snakes, it's a case of being persistant and following a routine, to ensure they understand the expectations and rules of being able to be around the snakes. It won't take them long to go along with them and even in the older ones case do them independantly, and in time, in my experience, the younger one, (once they reach 2 - 2.5). The best thing I can say, is to not let fears be transferred to your children. I work with children on a wide variety of levels every day of the week, and it's always sad when they have fears of animals, or something that may happen when around them. Your children have the opportunity to grow up with an unusual household pet, and grow gaining knowledge about what wonderful creatures they are, and thrive from it, and probably even educate those around them, especially their peers, which is always a great thing to see, and I'm sure everyone will agree when I say, there are alot of people who need educating about our love of exotic pets, and what better age to start than when they are young :) |
| Kelfezond |
Posted - 31/05/2012 : 16:37:46
My goodness, I believe there was two children in recorded history to have actually been taken ill with salmonella (correct me if I'm wrong) and since then the good old APA have been preaching of the deadly disease. In short, yes it's possible to catch it but very unlikely. Like BATs I'm always either getting bitten or kissing my snakes (not the same ones, I'm not that brave ^^) as well as being the "typical bloke" who tends to clean out the snakes with my hands instead of tools or brushes, I'm always being pooped on by a snake or cleaning it out and I very rarely use alcohol rub anymore to clean my hansd (though you should!) I tend to just use soap and water. (I have a feeling nobody will be accepting my home made cookies anymore)
But joking and comparing aside it is an incredibly overreaction to go to some of those lengths, I understand people wanting to keep their children safe but like BAT's said about going to the park being just as likely, it is in my opinion well and truely over the top. However not really my place to recommend on how to protect a child - I don't have any of my own. |
| n/a |
Posted - 31/05/2012 : 16:12:49
In the caresheet that came with my first corn hatchlings, it said that salmonella, while catchable from snakes, is just as easily caught, if not more easily, from a dog or a dodgy cream cake.
So I reckon taking the kids to the park to feed the ducks, if they happen to say touch grass or ground in dog or bird contaminated areas and then put their fingers in their mouths, is just as much of a risk, if not bigger, than a snake, especially as you're taking so many precautions around the snake.
Salmonella is everywhere, but I think you're right in spreading an old duvet for Marty to exercise, if you've got a 1 year old toddling about, and maybe the clothes washing isn't such a bad precaution either where there are young children about, but I must say, I've had snakes for nearly 3 years, I've been known to KISS my snakes (sorry to the tough brigade lol) and I often just rinse my hands under the cold tap instead of using gel or soap (very naughty!) and I've had no salmonella yet - touch wood!
Hope your partner's fears subside - and there will be more knowledgeable people than me along soon. |
| reptiledanny |
Posted - 31/05/2012 : 16:09:09
i think she is overreacting slightly. i got my first snake 4 years ago when i was 13 years old, and had 2 brother at the time, one was 11 and the other was about 5. they were perfectly fine and got to handle about once a week, and i just made sure that they used the gel wash stuff i had after. iv had mine 4 years know and tbh i dont wash my hands after handling. i should, but iv never had any ill effects, hell iv even had a snake shove her tail in my mouth and fish hook me. i would just make sure that they didnt put there hands in there mouths until after they had washed them thoroughly and all should be ok. it would be quite hard to get salmonella from them as its what they carry in there guts, so you would have to come into contact with either there urine or faeces to get salmonella |
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