Survey of salmonella species in Staten Island Zoo's snakes

Date:

March 29, 2015

Source:

Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB)

Summary:

To better understand the variety of salmonella species harbored by captive reptiles, Staten Island Zoo has teamed up with microbiologists.

Continued ...

Rattlesnake Roundups – Barbaric ‘entertainment’

Time to stop these barbaric events

January 2013. Rattlesnake roundups are undeniably cruel events. Each year, thousands of rattlesnakes are captured, abused, and killed for entertainment. Roundups began as snake control for farmers, but have evolved into tasteless public spectacles. Help shut them down.

Collectors from Texas to Pennsylvania pull rattlesnakes from their dens using poles tipped with fishhooks or spray gasoline or other toxins into the dens, poisoning local endangered and threatened wildlife.

Barbaric ‘entertainment'
Carted to roundups without food or water in dirty, cramped conditions, snakes arrive starved, dehydrated, or crushed. The survivors are used in exhibitions and daredevil acts, and some are decapitated and served up as exotic meat.

Sign a petition

The Centre for Biological Diversity is running a petition calling for an end to these barbaric events. Please follow this link to sign the petition.

People at these spectacles risk snake bites and consuming Salmonella along with their rattlesnake meat. Rattlesnake roundups are bad for snakes, the environment, and people. Find out if there is one near you.

Read on:  http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/rattlesnake-roundup013.html

New Way for Antibiotic Resistance to Spread

ScienceDaily (Nov. 15, 2012) — Washington State University researchers have found an unlikely recipe for antibiotic resistant bacteria: Mix cow dung and soil, and add urine infused with metabolized antibiotic. The urine will kill off normal E. coli in the dung-soil mixture. But antibiotic-resistant E. coli will survive in the soil to recolonize in a cow's gut through pasture, forage or bedding.

"I was surprised at how well this works, but it was not a surprise that it could be happening," says Doug Call, a molecular epidemiologist in WSU's Paul G. Allen School for Global Animal Health. Call led the research with an immunology and infectious disease Ph.D. student, Murugan Subbiah, now a post-doctoral researcher at Texas A & M. Their study appears in a recent issue of the online journal PLOS ONE.

While antibiotics have dramatically reduced infections in the past 70 years, their widespread and often indiscriminate use has led to the natural selection of drug-resistant microbes. People infected with the organisms have a harder time getting well, with longer hospital stays and a greater likelihood of death.

Animals are a major source of resistant bugs, receiving the bulk of antibiotics sold in the U.S.

The scientists focused on the antibiotic ceftiofur, a cephalosporin believed to be helping drive the proliferation of resistance in bacteria like Salmonella and E. coli. Ceftiofur has little impact on gut bacteria, says Call.

Continued:  http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/11/121115141826.htm

Salmonella fear spurs firm to recall dog treats

TRENTON, N.J. -- A pet food company is voluntarily recalling dog treats that could be contaminated with salmonella.

Nature's Recipe announced Saturday the recall of a limited supply of its "Nature's Recipe Oven Baked Biscuits with Real Chicken," which were manufactured at its plant in Topeka, Kan., and distributed nationally - primarily through pet specialty retailers.

The company says the product has the potential to be contaminated with salmonella, which can affect animals eating the products and pose a risk to humans from handling contaminated pet products.

Nature's Recipe officials say no pet or human illnesses have been reported, but suggest that pet owners monitor themselves and their dogs for signs of salmonella and seek medical care if symptoms worsen.

The company says the recall is precautionary, and advises consumers who bought the recalled treats to discard them immediately.

The recalled treats were sold in 19-ounce stand-up resealable pouches. The products included in the recall are marked with the Lot Codes 2199TP or 2200TP and a UPC Code of 30521 51549. The pouches also have a "Best If Used By Date" stamp of "10 11 13" and "10 12 13."

http://www.kansascity.com/2012/10/13/3865486/salmonella-fear-spurs-firm-to.html#storylink=rss

Turtles outlawed as pets in Tennessee because of harmful bacteria (All Sizes & Species) - via Herp Digest

Written by, Cindy Watts, Gannett Tennessee

Turtles might be cute to look at, but they also can harbor deadly bacteria, including salmonella.

For that reason, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency will not issue permits for pet stores to sell turtles or for people to own turtles. That means it’s illegal to keep them as pets in the state — regardless of whether people find them in their front yard or bring them back as souvenirs from vacation.

Walter Cook, captive wildlife coordinator for the TWRA, says: “It’s common sense.”

“It’s a public health concern and we have to be responsible,” he says. “Being able to pull the skin and legs back into a shell creates a moist environment that aids bacteria growth. And you can’t remove animals from the wild alive because they have a purpose and provide a necessary component to the ecosystem. We don’t know what the population of these animals is or how many could be removed before jeopardizing the population.”

For people who already keep turtles as pets, Cook says the association isn’t interested in prosecuting anyone. He just hopes people will donate them to one of Tennessee’s several wildlife education facilities, where the reptiles will be kept in a closed habitat to reduce the risk of spreading the deadly bacteria.

“We just don’t want anybody to get sick,” he says.

The TWRA can be reached at 615-781-6500 or visit them online at www.tn.gov/twra.

Salmonella from Pet Frogs Sickens 200+ (Via HerpDigest)

Salmonella from Pet Frogs Sickens 200+

Monday, April 11th, 2011, NewsInforno.com

A Salmonella outbreak has sickened at least 217 people and is being blamed on pet African dwarf water frogs, according to government health officials, MSNBC reports. Most of those who have fallen ill have been young children.

The infections have all originated from one California frog breeder and the Salmonella has been identified as Salmonella Typhimurium, said MSNBC, which added that the outbreak spans 41 states and has been ongoing since April 2009, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). CDC investigators confirmed the presence of Salmonella in the breeder's environment in March and tests continue to determine if there is a match to the strain being seen in the nationwide outbreak, added MSNBC.

The infections have been reported in people under one year of age and as old as 73 years of age, with a median age of five, said MSNBC; over 70-percent of those stricken have been under the age of 10 and about 30 percent have required hospitalization.

Interviews with those who have fallen ill revealed that they had contact with the frogs in the days prior to their falling ill and, of those who were able to identify the frog, 84 percent said they were in contact with African dwarf frogs, according to the CDC, wrote MSNBC. People generally fell ill between one week to eight months, with most becoming sick in about 15 days. Most people have cited symptoms that include diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps.

CDC officials said that the California breeding center was first identified as the outbreak source in 2010 and noted that water frogs, such as those involved in this outbreak, are typically kept in "home aquariums and fish tanks," said MSNBC. In 2009, we wrote that the outbreak had sickened 48 people in 25 states.

Salmonellae are, explained MedPageToday previously, "natural intestinal flora for all reptiles." The problem with the small reptiles is that children likely handle them differently than they do other reptiles such as "pet snakes, lizards, or iguanas," noted MedPageToday.

During a massive outbreak in 2007-considered the largest in this country linked to turtles-children handling the small pets experienced an astronomical 41-fold increased risk of Salmonella contamination versus control groups. Emerging evidence points to a rise in reptile-originated Salmonella outbreaks.

While salmonella bacteria are most often associated with food poisoning, a growing percentage initiate with pet reptiles, which can carry a variety of salmonella without symptoms, releasing the germ in their feces. Small pet reptiles are especially troublesome because they are often bred in crowded conditions and are more likely to be given to children as pets.

Very young children are at greatest risk for Salmonella infections and CDC officials warn that water frogs should not be given to children and that frogs should not be introduced to "homes with young children, children's care centers, hospitals, and nursing homes," wrote MSNBC. Health officials also point out that not just water frogs, but other amphibians and reptiles, such as turtles, can pose risks.