Salmonella???

Maro2Bear

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Was it Sears? I don’t recall them ever having a pet section. In our neck of the woods it was the 5 and Dime store...with all kinds of these turtles and tons of fish...
 

daniellenc

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As I remember things, the 4” rule was a result of youngsters getting salmonella back when Sears was selling those tiny RES’s and kids were indeed getting sick. Some reports went as far as saying children were at times carrying their turtles around in their mouths and that some even admitted to drinking the turtle water. Kids get sick, check things out and find salmonella.
So keep your tort out of your mouth and don’t drink their water.
 

JoesMum

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So... I should not worry as much?

Use your common sense and wash your hands properly as I hope you do after you visit the bathroom and before eating or preparing food.

You are in a home not a hospital and don’t need to sterilise absolutely everything. Bacterial infection, not just salmonella, is a risk from many things you handle. The highest risk being from raw meat, fish and eggs, but even unwashed salads can have e-coli.

Standard precautions like washing hands, keeping kitchen work surfaces clean (not sterile), serving cooked foods hot enough and keeping certain foods chilled will stop almost everything.

If you have small children, stomach upsets are inevitable at some stage. The rest of the time you are probably very unlucky to get something nasty.
 

creepy-crawler

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why is this even a question? yes, of course you wash your hands after each contact, nt because of salmonella, but because it is a freaken common sense. they crawl through pee and poop and unless you want that in your mouth, yeah, wash your hands every time after handling anyone that is not human, even after some humans too :) lol
 

Elijah

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Jun 18, 2018
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Hi, I have a few questions about tortoises giving salmonella. When I first got my tort I washed my hands every time I touched my torts because I was told they can give salmonella. I still do that. I’ve seen all these pictures of people letting there torts around there houses. I don’t let my tortoise in the house and touch anything after I touch her until I wash my hands. Is that necessary?
You should always wash your hands no matter what or whom you touch, however, the myth of salmonella comes from aquatic terrapins that eat raw fish and sometimes birds. Not so much from vegetarian tortoises.
 
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