Pregnancy and Snake Keeping

[Artemis]

Here is a fun question, and one I wouldnt dream of asking an OB/GYN.

Since snakes naturally carry salmonella, and they bite into rats and could potentially bite you with their undoubtedly bacteria laden mouths, is it a bad idea to continue working with my snakes if I am pregnant?
(and Im not saying I am... not sure yet...)

I ask because my husband is still terrified of my snakes, and he isnt about to start feeding them and cleaning out their enclosures, so that still leaves only me.

I know catboxes are bad because of the toxoplasmosis (which fortunately he can handle!) but it got me wondering if cleaning enclosures and risking bites (which still has yet to happen, knock on wood) is a good idea if you arent just worried about yourself?

Thoughts guys?

Thanks

Artemis

[TheLionsShare]

Just get a snake hook or something so they cant bite you.

[mcfreshdeli]

My fiance' handled ours. But she isn't a biter

[crazy4reptiles]

Never even thought of that.... MY Girls gonna pop any day, and she handled them the whole time... She even worked at a petstore and handled reptiles everyday.....

[sSNAKESs.com]

Im not sure salmonella is commonly transferred through a bite. This is something that is usually contracted from a reptile through not practicing the best hygine after handling.

Im under the impression that you dont find salmonella in snakes as often as you do chelonians and lizards. I honestly think you shouldnt worry about it. As long as youre washing your hands after handling then there is little chance of you contracting it.

[Artemis]

Thanks gang. I can only imagine the reaction I would have gotten asking my OB..

And it is official now. Nice to be able to tell someone, as our family and most people we know are being kept in the dark until its unavoidable :)

Any other insights on this issue are welcome. :)

Artemis

[Linds]

Both toxoplasmosis (caused by infection from parasites which *may* be present in cat feces) and salmonella are easily avoided by simple handwashing. I sincerely hope anyone who handles cat poopies and snake poopies washes their hands well afterwards, regardless of whether they are pregnant or not :eek:

Salmonella is typically shed through feces, though I've read several places you can become infected from being bitten by a cat or dog (or person) that has it. I don't know if different strains are shed and carried differently by different animals... I think the concentrations are too small to worry about in the mouth though, or you would be able to test for salmonella via saliva. I really wouldn't worry about your litterbox or reptiles though, common sense and basic hygiene will prevent anything... they just put disclaimers and warnings out because some people just lack both :p

[ravensgait]

Artemis, My wife did some research on this(she's gravid) there is a risk to pregnant women and young children. Don't wash cages etc in the kitchen sink or bath tub if you do clean up with bleach afterwords. Wash hands after contact with animals ETC ETC. Seems that children have a weaker immune system and should not handle them till 4 or 5 years old. If your a bit more careful should be no problems.
Randy

[timfriesen32]

Interesting question....and one that my wife and I actually asked our doctor (my wife is pregnant as well).

The doctor actually gave us the "why would you want to keep snakes anyhow" question (she's deathly afraid of snakes), but then assured us that as long as hands are washed well with soap or antibacterial hand cleaner, that everything would be fine. My wife doesn't handle the snakes much or do any of the cleaning, but we thought it was a good question to ask anyhow.

TIm

[peterm15]

imo salmonella is a load of crap.. you have a better chance of getting it from cooking/eating chicken.. and an even bigger chance if you eat out..

[crackedcorn]

Excellent topic. My wife is 8 months along and she will not handle/clean a snake/cage but it has nothing to do with being pregnant lol. If it was me, just as a precaution i would use those small rubber gloves while cleaning the poop up, if you are concerned

[zero&stich]

If I remember correctly(which I would be very well mistaken since I have a short-term memory) that Salmonella is a bacteria in the intestial tract of animals. So Linds would be correct that washing hands is probablly the best way to prevent it.

However I did find an excellent article on Salmonella that was brought to my attension by a co-worker of mine. It should answer all questions. I highly recomend it to everyone! I thought I knew everything bout this bacteria and was quickly refreshed of some important areas I missed/forgotton.

Here's the link
Arav.org Salmonella Article (http://www.arav.org/SalmonellaOwner.htm)

This might be a good article to possiable pin to in the forum. ;) Enjoy.
Edit whoops looks like I repeated some stuff Linds said :rolleyes: Sorry.

[Murse]

Shouldn't be a problem..... Use proper handwashing Immediately after handling the snake(s). You can buy latex or vinyl gloves at any drug store.... ie: for cleaning up cage or dropings. And since Salmonellais an itestinal bacteria... it would MOST LIKLEY only effect you and not enter your blood to be passed to the baby.
Caution, caution, caution.... is the best policy. Common sense...
don't touch your eyes, mouth, nose, face, etc before you can wash your hands.
Snakes don't carry toxoplasmosis like cats that can cause serious problems for a fetus.

[capsicum]

First, CONGRATS!!!

Secondly, if you have any rodent pets, do not clean them - have some one else do it for you. I can not remmember the name of it, but I was warned last year about something in the feces and/or urine of small pets (and it wasn't Hanta Virus).

TK

[rwg]

Salmonella is carried by about 70% of reptiles and about 30% of domestic cats. It's transmitted through contact with feces. Handwashing is the best way of preventing transmission. Aquatic turtles cause a lot of infections because of course they swim in their own feces, but snakes in enclosures often come into contact with their own feces. I'm not aware of bites causing transmission, although any bite should be treated with an anti-septic of some sort. Oh, and congrats.
:)

rg

[Artemis]

:) thanks! Looks like lots of others are expecting too, hope your gravid s/o's all have smooth sailing for their terms, also!

[nita]

Congrats Artemis!!

As everyone else said hygene is the most important. If you are the one cleaning the cages you could use gloves to do so as for handling the animals as long as you wash good afterward. Also my kids have been holding snakes since they were 2 yrs old and never had a problem. I did end up giving away the two snakes I had shortly after my children were born but that was a matter of three 2 month old babies kept me so busy I couldn't even take care of the cornsnakes!! We got back into BP's when the girls were 2 and haven't looked back. The girls are always asking to hold them and always asking if it is time to clean cages!! They are the official snake holders, water dish cleaners and spritzers while I'm cleaning cages lol. We did have to watch that Sasha wasn't kissing the snakes though when she got to hold them. She is like a little Elmira!!

[Artemis]

Nita, Im a little worried about that whole issue of taking care of them myself, especially in that first month or so right after, when its hard to get ANYTHING done, and you are still recovering while trying to do what you gotta do! Since hubby isnt going to be doing it, I might try to find a sitter to take my snakes for a month or 2 so I can relax and not have to worry about it. Wish me luck doing that though, especially having just moved!!!

I dont think I would want get rid of them though, but if it comes down to compromising their care, id be willing to let them go.

So you had TRIPLETS???? holy moly!! how was that???

[nita]

<chuckle> Busy, still is. :)

Things were definately crazy for the first few months. LOL, Don't remember much of it, in and out of hospitals for the first 3 1/2 weeks, then there was just no sleep for the next year!! Wouldn't change it though and now we manage with three 4 1/2 yr olds and 20 snakes. LOL, I'm a sucker for punishment I think.