salmonella

[kelii]

Hi
I was wondering if anyone here has everg otten sick from their reptiles. I'm going to be getting a leo soon, and I'm concerned about my 4 year old getting sick.
Thanks

 

[rhino43grr]

i haven't. just make him/her wash his/her hands if he/she holds it.

 

[ReptileMan27]

Like said above, always wash your hands with soap and water after handling any herp.

 

[Stitch]

One other tip is to make sure the geckos cage is in an area where your child cannot get to it. Like in a seperate room with the door shut and one of those child proof hanlde things (sorry). This way she can't get to it without you. Make sure you and the child washes their hands before touching anything else, when handling the gecko. My sister has 2 geckos with screen lids that lock. Her children are 3 and 7, they do not have the motor functions yet to open the lid.

 

[moosassah]

We have 2 leos & 2 boys ages 4 & 6. They both are very respectful of washing their hands both before & after handling the geckos. If you explain to them that they all carry germs *kids included* that can make eachother sick they will understand. Check your local library for books on reptiles, pets, and if you're lucky leopard geckos specifically. Read the books with them before you get the gecko so they have an idea of what to expect.

Be very careful when they are handling the leo. Go into detail about things like not grabbing them, especially their tail that can fall off; most leos don't want to be petted like a cat or dog (our female is an exception); and the importance of sitting down someplace where the gecko will be safe if it falls or jumps off their hand/arm/back/head etc.

My boys were pretty scary to watch handle the leos when we first got them because of being scared or simply freaked out by the feeling of their nails on their skin. I always made sure I sat right near them to "rescue" whoever looked to be in distress. Luckily no one has come to harm & the boys have learned to really love having them.

It's a great learning experience. My boys are now raising mealies for them now rather than buying them at the store.

 

[Stitch]

Moosah made a great point that I want to reiterate. When your child does hold the gecko make sure they are siting down and in an open area. This way the gecko can't hide and the child can't drop the gecko too far or step on it.

I let my nephew hold one of my juvie geckos and I thought I was holding his arm tight enough. Well my nephew freaked and wound up tossing the gecko half way across the room. My nephew was crying because my reaction was to yell and I'm panicking to check the gecko out. But in the end every one was fine.

 

[Select Gex]

Salmonella more commonly comes from the environment than the actual reptile. A turtle in dirty stagnant water is what you need to look out for. In that case it'd be the cage causing the salmonella and the turtle just being in there that gets it on him.

More reading on washing your hands, etc:
http://www.kingsnake.com/salmonella.html

Honestly I've kept a couple hundred geckos over the years, and worked at a reptile store full of nasty fresh imports or sick animals and have never gotten anything.. only an upset stomach when I ate a meal worm!

 

[Stitch]

Salmonella is passed through the feces, but the animals still carries it. So yes and no when it comes to the environment. The gecko poops in it's cage so therefore the cage is contaminated. The cleaner the cage is and good hand washing habits are, then less likely the chance of exposure.

 

[Grinning Geckos]

I've never heard of a verified case of getting ill from any reptile other than a turtle. Caution is best, but I bet if you ask around, no one else knows of anyone who has gotten sick either. Raw chicken is 100X more dangerous to your kids than a leo.

 

[Stitch]

I don't know which reptile it was but about 4-5 months ago they made a big deal here in MD because I think an infant died from salmonella. Obviously this would mean the adults handled the reptile and did not thoroughly wash their hands before dealing with the child. Every pet shop in town started posting salmonella warnings on their reptile cages.

 

[ALGeckos]

If you start teaching your 4 year old son the importance of cleaning his hands after reptile handling, he will know to do so every time.

I have a younger cousin who I babysat A LOT since he was a baby, and starting at age 3, he was handling my leopard geckos. He didn't grab and made sure he used hand sanitizer and washed his hands with soap and water. He learned quickly, did it on his own, and now he's turning 7 - and is still responsible about really washing up when he's done handling. So just stress the importance, remind your child, and just make sure they do it until it becomes routine.

I also have to agree that you may want to keep a lock on the cage in a separate room so that your child can't just get up and pick up the gecko whenever he feels like it until he knows the proper way to handle it and routinely washes his hands thoroughly after he's done handling.

 

[Select Gex]

The reason turtles had salmonella scare attached to them was due to the large breeding facilities that produced the bulk of red ear sliders. They were found to be fed chicken that was got sub human grade scores, and as it sat in the sun and in the water it produced salmonella bacteria. The turtles being in the same water, had the bacteria on them. As stores sold these "dime turtles" they would go to kids as a pet, often the turtle being put in the mouth of the child when they were unsupervised, etc.

 

[yellermelon]

Ha ha you ate a meal worm...yuck!

 

[PrototypeGeckos]

Ha ha you ate a meal worm...yuck!

Hey, Armstrongs chocolate covered mealworms and crickets are no joke, don't knock it til you try it Chris, lol.

 

[kelii]

Thanks guys for all the helpfull comments.

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

It is extremely rare for a leopard gecko to have salmonella. It is much more common in imported tropical and aquatic reptiles and amphibians. It is always a good habit to wahs your hands after handling ANY animal... even your dog.

 

[BluGnat]

I'm doomed. I kiss my geckos. Never been sick.

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

LOL! I kiss my geckos, too! (but not on the lips...)

 

[curiousKathy]

I would like to make a few clarifications...

I test for salmonella every day where I work. We are working on a case now with the health department that involves two children who have gotten ill with salmonella from their pet turtles bought from the same reptile owner. All 4 turtles were under 4" carpices. We are in the process of identifying which species of salmonella we found in the turtles and their aquarium water. The turtles did not get ill from the water, but comtaminated the water with their salmonella infested feces. Reptiles will also spread their feces around their cages after stepping in it. Crickets and mealworms walking through salmonella infected feces can spread the salmonella around the tank as well. So keeping the cage clean is helpful because it can be spread without you knowing where in their environment. Then of course the insects can reinfect the reptile when it is eaten...

Leopard geckos can get salmonella. Jackie, whom we purchased from a pet store, tested positive for it at work. We were unable to identify which species of salmonella after sending it to a national laboratory, so we are just very careful to wash and not touch our faces, etc. Most reptiles are carriers; not all show signs of infection, but they can pass it on to humans and other reptiles.

Another VERY IMPORTANT NOTE!!! It's not just important to wash your hands before an after handling reptiles, but to HIGHLY SUPERVISE your children so THEY DON'T TOUCH THEIR FACES OR MOUTHS while handling reptiles or before washing!

Okay...off my soapbox...I am very sensitive to this topic as I deal with salmonella every day. We test all kinds of animals for salmonella; not just poultry and reptiles.

Kathy Painter

 

[dragonflyreptiles]

Well if you are worried about salmonella and your reptiles being a carrier you need to include your cats, dogs, and food such as cattle (beef) poultry, pork, and for taht matter eggs.

You need to wash your hands no matter what you handle before they get near your mouth, raw chicken is a well known carrier and lots of people throw chicken in the pot and go on with a bare minimum hand washing not even thinking about the counter, the cutting board, the children that walk by and touch the counter and cutting board.

So just think about what you have in your house every day of every week that may or may not be carrying salmonella that you may or may not have properly cleaned up after then after you are sure that you have all of that taken care of look to getting a reptile and cleaning up after it.