Future dragon owner with a big concern

[HomeZoo02]

Hello, I am new to the forum. I am thinking about getting a bearded dragon in the spring. I have been doing a lot of research and have found this forum to be most helpful as it deals with real issues from real beardie owners.

I do have one concern, though. Every information site or book I've read, I find that people who are pregnant or have children under 5 just shouldn't own reptiles. My husband and I currently don't want any children. We're both trying to finish our respective degrees and our careers are just starting to go somewhere. However, bearded dragons from what I've read live upwards of ten years. That's not to say in the beardie's lifetime we won't change our minds and decide to have kids.

I'm concerned because I'm having difficulties trying to gauge how serious the salmonella threat is to someone who is pregnant or has a young child. I've had several species of pets throughout my life: cats, birds, dogs, rodents, ferrets, fish, amphibians...pretty much the only thing I haven't had is a reptile. No one in my family has ever gotten sick from any of our pets.

From what I've read on this forum, it seems that beardie owners are of an opinion that this threat for normal, healthy people is blown out of proportion. That one is more likely to get sick from undercooked food than a dragon. So, if my husband and I should decide within the next ten years to have children, would it be safe to still have the reptile in the home if he handled the cage cleanings and/or I wore rubber gloves if for some reason I had to do it? (All other hygiene practices would still be followed). Any opinions would be greatly appreciated as as much as I wanted a bearded dragon, I don't want to bring an animal into my home that I may end up having to give up during its lifetime.

Thank you.

 

[maxattack]

You would have to be much more careful if you had a cat. Toxoplasmosis is a very real danger during pregnancy and OB's will tell you to wear gloves & a mask to change cat litter while pregnant.

As for bearded dragons, I have two toddlers and we use normal precautions (i.e. wash hands after handling) and have never had a problem. I really believe it is blown way out of proportion.

 

[neecie]

Yea, you're overthinking it. I, and my grandchildren, wash our hands before handling "Sandy" and then after.
No worry -- rubber gloves aren't necessary. Besides they like to be touched and petted. As we know in the news ................almost everything has a warning. Chill!

 

[1happymommy]

I would not worry either. I have 2 & 4 yr olds and they wash before and after as well. I believe your kitchen is way more dangerous than handling a lizard. If your pregnant and need to clean out the cage you may want to wear latex gloves which I do anyway.

 

[HomeZoo02]

Thank you all so much for your input! It does certainly help allay my worries. Like I said, the informational sites/books I've read thus far make it seem like if you have young children and you want a reptile, you're S.O.L. Then again, I didn't know how much of that was justified and how much was just a warning label for dummies (The Warning! Coffee is HOT labels come to mind).

Whew, now I get to go back to thinking up names

 

[andy65]

I remember reading somewhere that there has been only 1 confirmed case of salmonella coming from a dragon and that was because the tank and other stuff that came into contact with the dragon was being washed in the sink in the kitchen.

If I remember right is was a respect site too, not wiki or the likes. I will go see if I can dig it up... here I found it! Like every else has said, wash your hand before and after you have been playing with your dragon and DEFIANTLY after you have been cleaning the cage or cleaning up poo.
I would have your husband clean the cage out while your pregnant just to be on the safer side of things.

 

[diamc]

[Moved from General Discussion forum as it seemed better suited here]

 

[m1westwood]

I strongly advise you not seek this type of information on a bulletin board filled with people, like myself, who own and love bearded dragons. I assume that most of us have never had a salmonella incident, and therefore believe that there is very little risk. The numbers, however, are out there. I recommend you read the available literature and make your own informed decision, instead of listening to us tell you how safe it is because we have never been infected. I have copied some relevant articles and their URL's below so you can look through them...

http://www.eurosurveillance.org/ViewArticle.aspx?ArticleId=18902

Salmonella infections are caused by consumption of contaminated food, person-to-person transmission, waterborne transmission and numerous environmental and animal exposures. Specifically, reptiles and other cold blooded animals (often referred to as “exotic pets”) can act as reservoirs of Salmonella, and cases of infection have been associated with direct or indirect contact with these animals. Approximately 1.4 million human cases of Salmonella infection occur each year in the United States and it has been estimated that 74,000 are a result of exposure to reptiles and amphibians [1]. Regular case reports of reptile-associated salmonellosis in the US are available for the period 1994-2002 [2-4]. Cases of Salmonella infection attributed to direct or indirect contact with reptiles or other exotic pets have been described in a number of European countries, too [5-16] but a more comprehensive overview of the magnitude of this problem in Europe is lacking. In total, 160,649 human cases of salmonellosis were reported in 2006 in the then 25 European Union Member States, Bulgaria, Romania, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway

http://www.cdc.gov/healthypets/animals/reptiles.htm

An estimated 3% of households in the United States own at least one reptile. Reptiles, including turtles, lizards, and snakes, can carry germs that make people sick. Of greatest importance is salmonellosis. An estimated 70,000 people get salmonellosis from contact with reptiles in the United States each year.

http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5249a3.htm

Reptile-Associated Salmonellosis --- Selected States, 1998--2002

http://www.michigan.gov/mda/1,1607,7-125-1569_16979-40908--,00.html

[*]A high proportion of reptiles are symptomatic carriers of Salmonella. Fecal carriage rate can be more than 90 percent.
[*]Attempts to culture reptiles are sometimes not successful because of intermittent shedding. Treatment of reptiles with antibiotics has been unsuccessful and has let to increased antibiotic resistance.
[*]Numerous salmonella cases in humans have now been traced to reptiles. CDC estimates that 3-5 percent of the two to six million human salmonellosis cases each year may be attributed to reptiles.

Good Luck!

 

[m1westwood]

Oh, and if you were wondering what prompted my previous post, it is because my beardie just bit me and broke the skin! He is still being trained, and gets very aggressive when I try to pick him up - however, this incident was my own fault - I was feeding him Phoenix Worms by hand (a time when he is very calm and loves to have my hands in the cage), but I dropped the worm and he mistook the end of my finger for a worm; when he could not get it with his tongue he decided maybe he could rip it off with his teeth. Luckily, he is only about half grown, so it did not hurt much but rather startled me and the children in the room

Now I am off to do a little more research myself, and to order a good pair of gloves to handle him with until he settles down :study:

 

[babyelvissocute]

I agree with everyone else. It should be fine owning one with small children. I have a 2 year old brother that loves Elvis, and sometimes if Ben washes his hands before or after i allow him to hold Elvis if he sits on the couch and im there. My little cousins and my pregnant aunt also enjoys holding Elvis, and nobody has ever gotten sick becuz of Elvis.
~Kaitlyn and Elvis~

 

[Zemanski]

I have understood from general discussion that the risk is low but it is still there.

it isn't something to panic about

but there are a lot of things you can do though to reduce the risk - not handling, cleaning out, feeding, etc when pregnant or nursing; using an antibacterial hand gel, keeping all utensils etc very clean and not cleaning them around areas that are used for human food. Most of them are just common sense and very easily accommodated.

I know someone who allows her dragon to walk on the kitchen table where the family eats - that, to me, is just asking for trouble.

 

[maxattack]

I have understood from general discussion that the risk is low but it is still there.

it isn't something to panic about

but there are a lot of things you can do though to reduce the risk - not handling, cleaning out, feeding, etc when pregnant or nursing; using an antibacterial hand gel, keeping all utensils etc very clean and not cleaning them around areas that are used for human food. Most of them are just common sense and very easily accommodated.

I know someone who allows her dragon to walk on the kitchen table where the family eats - that, to me, is just asking for trouble.

I totally agree. You should treat all reptiles as if they have salmonella since the chance is very high that they do. That being said, the best way to avoid salmonella contamination is to wash hands after handling your dragon and not cleaning beardie stuff where you are likely to have contact with food items. For example I clean my beardie stuff in the bathtub then spray the tub with a bleach solution. Since Buttercup poos in her bath, she has her own bathtub (a dish pan) the contents of which I dump into the toilet after she has her poo poo. I also rinse her with clean water after she has poopied in the tub. I teach my children to wash their hands after handling ANY animal since they can contract salmonella or e-coli from them. With proper precautions I think it is safe to have reptiles but I absolutely agree with the previous poster that you should do your homework and know what and how to minimize the risks. The CDC has a great website and is very informative about how to deal with these risks.

 

[Jasper's Mom]

A friend of mine just gave birth to her third child. They have a beardie and multiple snakes, and have never had an issue. Just wash hands before and after handling (like you would anyway), and try not to stick the beardie in your mouth. :wink: :lol:

 

[hannicharlophi]

I agree with everyone. Technically, yes its possible to catch salmonella from reptiles and it happens, BUT I wonder why they caught it? Not washing hands? Touching their feces?

I dont worry about it- I probably would catch it from eating my sandwich than one of my beardies.
If you're safe and you wash your hands and you avoid directly touching their feces than there's nothing to be worried about

 

[smaug85]

Do you think we've made our point? lol.
If you do end up getting a bearded dragon, then on behalf of the beardeddragon.org community I wish you many happy years with him/her