Posted on 04/25/2014 9:24:35 AM PDT by JoeProBono
A salmonella outbreak that has so far sickened 132 people in 31 states over the last two years has now been traced to a source — pet lizards called bearded dragons, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The bearded dragons were purchased from multiple stores in different states, the CDC researchers said today (April 24). More than half of people infected were children younger than 5, and 42 percent of patients had to be hospitalized. The CDC is continuing to watch for other cases that may be part of this outbreak.
The outbreak is caused by bacteria called Salmonella cotham, a rare type of salmonella, researchers found. Before this outbreak, typically fewer than 25 Salmonella cotham infections were reported each year. Bearded dragons are popular pet lizards. They are native to Australia and are found in a variety of colors, including gray, red and yellow. The pet industry is working with public health officials to determine the source of the bearded dragons linked to this outbreak, according to the CDC.......
(Excerpt) Read more at livescience.com ...
Just wash hands after and they are fine I am sure.
Sad news. Bearded Dragons are actually friendly, alert little guys, very different from other lizards. If I didn’t have a cat, I’d be tempted to own one. Hope they can they be cured of Salmonella.
Iguanas are also a common source of the disease.
Awww. We CAN all get along.
FYI
Beardies have an excellent vision range.
Same with most Swifts.
They will see and respond to things past ten foot away.
Some lizards seem to be “near sighted” and will only respond to things within ten foot.
Not beardies.
Thanks for the info. I visit Beardies in the pet store, and they do follow me with their eyes…even looking backwards over their “shoulders.”
Welcome.
Not certain about their intelligence though.
Tex Chick has beardies and can provide info on how smart they are.
They do not seem to be very clever. They’re alert to predators, but that’s about it.
my daughter had 2 of these about 10 years ago.. I never got why she wanted them... you might as well put a stick in a cage and give it name, as far as I’m concerned.
No surprise here.
It’s an established fact that upward of 90% of all reptiles and amphibians carry salmonella of their skin.
There was even a recent case where a zoo employee, who worked with reptiles, infected and re-infected his newborn daughter until he was instructed to bath and change his clothing when he got home from work, before he could hold his daughter.
I remember the olden days when it was pet turtles that were the problem. You don’t see them in stores anymore.
We had some and never got sick.
Along with a host of assorted reptiles collected by my daughter, I kept a baby Red Eared Slider that reached 10 inches in diameter. Never had a problem with salmonella, because everybody was required to use a strong disinfecting hand soap with a thorough washing after contact with the critters and their environment.
If you think that’s bad, never have a pet armadillo, a beast that is spreading across the Southland, and wasn’t even stopped by the Mississippi river.
Armadillos can carry and transmit leprosy to humans.
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