# Sick from your tortoise?



## DanaRae60 (Mar 20, 2012)

Have read you can get sick from handling a turtle. Does anyone know if you can get sick from a tortoise? I have visited and held ours at the breeder every weekend for the past 3 weeks, but suddenly came down with flu-like symptoms 24 hours after our last visit on Sunday. Could be purely coincidence, but I just thought I'd check with all of you. Ours is a 2 year old Star.


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## Laura (Mar 20, 2012)

salmonella is possible.. but its everywhere..


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## Tom (Mar 20, 2012)

Turtles and tortoises can carry salmonella. It is physically possible that you picked up this bacteria from handling one. However it is much more likely that you picked up a virus from a door handle, a keyboard or breathing the air while out in public...

While it is physically possible, I have never seen one single case of a person getting sick from touching a tortoise.


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## ALDABRAMAN (Mar 20, 2012)

Laura said:


> salmonella is possible.. but its everywhere..



 Wash you hands and should be no issue.


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## dmmj (Mar 21, 2012)

Tiny partial list of thing with salmonella Money, eggs, almost everything under the sun. While it is possible there is no way to tell for sure ( as far as I know) Basic hygiene should eliminate most possibilities. ( I wash my hands after every time I handle my tortoises)


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## Jacqui (Mar 21, 2012)

dmmj said:


> Tiny partial list of thing with salmonella Money, eggs, almost everything under the sun. While it is possible there is no way to tell for sure ( as far as I know) Basic hygiene should eliminate most possibilities. ( I wash my hands after every time I handle my tortoises)



I have to agree with David on this one. Wash your hands and oh, don't put the tortoise in your mouth or drink his dirty bath water.


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## StudentoftheReptile (Mar 21, 2012)

In addition to washing hands, etc...Don't eat the tortoise's poop. Don't lick the tortoise's butt. Don't drink the tortoises' urine. Etc etc....essentially, use common sense and practice good hygiene.

It's amazing how so many people freak out over the Salmonella thing (not saying you are, DanaRae).


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## Angi (Mar 21, 2012)

While we are on the subject. What about dogs? Can they get sick from drinking out of the torts soak dish or eating extra Muzuri left in the tort bowl? I ask this because my dog stalks the Muzuri bowl until I turn my back. He has also been known to take a drink if I don't pick the soak bowls up right away.


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## ascott (Mar 21, 2012)

Angi, your dog should be aok...after all their food is an item that we should not place onto our eating surfaces due to salmonella to us...

Plus, have you seen the crap they eat that "looks" Good to them...lol


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## Angi (Mar 21, 2012)

Hmmm....I did not know we should be concerned about dog food. I put my dog dish on the counter to ad his herbal suppliments all the time. Sorry if this is O/T, but it is sort of the same topic.


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## DanaRae60 (Mar 21, 2012)

Saw the doctor today and he said I have a stomach bug that will go away in a few days.

While we are on the topic, do any of you take precautions when washing your tortoises food and water dishes? I have bought a scrubby brush that will be for his items only. For example, is it okay to wash their bowls in the kitchen sink?

Thanks!



Angi said:


> While we are on the subject. What about dogs? Can they get sick from drinking out of the torts soak dish or eating extra Muzuri left in the tort bowl? I ask this because my dog stalks the Muzuri bowl until I turn my back. He has also been known to take a drink if I don't pick the soak bowls up right away.



Sounds like our dachshund, I turned my back on her once and she ran off with a slice of pizza she had just grabbed off my plate. Never a dull moment!


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## StudentoftheReptile (Mar 21, 2012)

DanaRae60 said:


> While we are on the topic, do any of you take precautions when washing your tortoises food and water dishes? I have bought a scrubby brush that will be for his items only. For example, is it okay to wash their bowls in the kitchen sink?



I'm kind of a germaphobe, and I have the luxury of a utility sink in the laundry room close to the tortoise enclosures that I use for washing pet bowls and dishes. Even if I didn't care, my wife does, and she wouldn't let me anywhere the kitchen sink with tortoise stuff!



> Sounds like our dachshund, I turned my back on her once and she ran off with a slice of pizza she had just grabbed off my plate. Never a dull moment!



Our family's dachsunds have been the same way. My dachsund/beagle mix always ate random stuff from the yard: mushrooms, sticks, rocks, leaves, some weird grey clay-like stuff growing on a tree I never could identify. She was terrible. Worse than a child.


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## Madkins007 (Mar 21, 2012)

The germs that tortoises can carry are not much different than those we carry. However you wash your own dishes is OK for the tortoise stuff.

However, to reduce the chances of contamination, you can also try a few other tricks- 
- My food dishes for the torts are sheets of folded newspaper- I just wrap them up with any food or solid wastes in the habitat and toss it all.
- My current water dishes are clay-like plastic plant saucers, and I have 2- one in use, one being washed and dried.
- If you find them, using dishwasher safe dishes allows you to benefit from the near-sterilizing capabilities of the dishwasher.
- Proper universal precautions dictates that once you handle something potentially soiled (food dish, wastes, etc- no matter what species) that you do not handle any clean items or surfaces until you wash your hands. In my case, that means I scoop the cat litter box, grab out the tort's food and water stuff, and put the cat's food and water dishes in the sink. THEN I wash my hands well and feed everyone.


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## DanaRae60 (Mar 21, 2012)

Madkins007 said:


> The germs that tortoises can carry are not much different than those we carry. However you wash your own dishes is OK for the tortoise stuff.
> 
> However, to reduce the chances of contamination, you can also try a few other tricks-
> - My food dishes for the torts are sheets of folded newspaper- I just wrap them up with any food or solid wastes in the habitat and toss it all.
> ...



Good advice, thank you!


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## Zamric (Mar 21, 2012)

As a Chef, I can tell you that salmonella is everywhere and you've probably been sick because of it more time than you might think! 

AND, as everyone has stated before me, Hand Washing is the best possable solution!....but if you do have it it can be as minor as an up-set stomuck (very Minor) to a "Long Night" sitting on the toilet (Mild) to a couple of days wishing you where dead (Major). Unless you are very young or very old, Salmonella poisoning is just inconvieniant! Very young and Very old may have more sever symtoms.


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## nicoleandrocky (Mar 21, 2012)

Tom said:


> Turtles and tortoises can carry salmonella. It is physically possible that you picked up this bacteria from handling one. However it is much more likely that you picked up a virus from a door handle, a keyboard or breathing the air while out in public...
> 
> While it is physically possible, I have never seen one single case of a person getting sick from touching a tortoise.



i agree. touching them isn't going to get you sick, but if you lick your tortoise thats different...


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