"You don't read in the news of veterinarians dropping dead of these zoological diseases. Rowell recommended pregnant woman ask someone else to change their cat litter when they're pregnant, avoid digging outside in the garden and wash their hands if they do touch soil.ĭespite the variety of pet-to-human diseases, Becker pointed out that most of them are non-lethal. "The most common thing I can think of is toxoplasmosis in pregnant women." "With most healthy people and the usual good hygiene, it's not a common problem," said Rowell. Keeping open wounds covered will stop other infections, as will good, old-fashioned hand washing. Not allowing your pet to lick your face can also stop the spread of parasites. "If you pick up your yard every other day, the feces won't get to the infective stage," explained Becker. "You don't want to clean the cages out in the same place you prepare food," said Becker, who added people should never wash water dishes or pets in the kitchen sink.īecker noted that keeping a yard clean can also go a long way to prevent roundworm and other parasites from infecting young children. But he added people can cut the risk and keep the pet by following good hygiene. Meanwhile, Becker warned that cats put their owners at eight times the normal risk for contracting the superbug MRSA. Rowell noted that pet birds can carry the diseases psittacosis and cryptococcus. "They don't care where you live, they ask for lifetime parasite control for all pets." "People would try to time parasite control for the seasons, but often they'd forget," said Becker. Although discovered in the Rocky Mountains, the disease is far more common in the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic regions and affects 250 to 1,200 people each year, according to the CDC.īecker noted the prevalence of tick-borne diseases recently motivated organizations including the non-profit Companion Animal Parasite Council to ask pet owners everywhere to fight parasites year-round. These ticks carry the severe infection of Rocky Mountain spotted fever. Pets also can pick up the American dog tick and Rocky Mountain wood tick while playing outside. More than 25,000 people reported Lyme disease infections to the CDC last year. Once outside, even on the leash, a tick can hitch a ride on your dog or cat, and then infect you with Lyme disease. In total, 700 people lose their vision from a zoonotic parasite each year, according to the CDC.įurry friends are easy targets for deer ticks, or as Becker calls them, "heinous hitchhikers," which thrive in wooded areas in the Northeast. Unfortunately, the worms may wander into the retina and cause blindness. "When I was a kid, we had these little plastic trays with water, and a little plastic palm tree that was filled with little tiny turtles," said veterinarian Marty Becker. The CDC reported 107 infections from salmonella linked to turtles in 2008, although the FDA put limits on turtle sales for this very reason. The current scare isn't the first time a generation of parents somehow forgot about salmonella and pets, and it likely won't be the last. "Many times it isn't diagnosed, but if a person gets really sick they can be hospitalized and doctors may do the full testing." Steven Rowell, hospital director of the Foster Hospital for Small Animals in North Grafton, Mass. People can get it from food poisoning and pass it to others," said Dr. It could be from turtles, it could be frogs, it can be passed from dogs. In light of the new infections, the FDA urged parents to keep reptiles and amphibians away from children under age 5, and clean aquariums in a space away from the kitchen sink. Salmonella in the guts of frogs, salamanders, newts, turtles, lizards and snakes can easily spread from a feces-contaminated aquarium into the mouth, nose and eyes of small children.
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