Salmonella and iguanas: a rebuttal
Here's a comment from a well-meaning but ultimately misinformed reader. I'm commenting on it because these misconceptions are not uncommon.
"This blog post appears to be based on inadequate knowledge of iguanas. I am an iguana keeper and have been for several years. Unlike many reptiles, iguanas do not carry salmonella on their skin and are not a high salmonella risk. Furthermore, as long as the bath tub is disinfected afterward, there is generally no problem with iguanas bathing or even defecating in bath tubs shared with humans (although I do understand concerns of those with babies or immunocompromised people)."
Iguanas can and do carry Salmonella on their skin. It mainly resides in their intestinal tract but can easily contaminate their skin. For example, a 10-week study of 12 green iguanas reported that they all shed Salmonella at least once during the course of the study (Burnham et al, J Am Vet Med Assoc 1998). You have to assume that every iguana is carrying Salmonella.
People can and do get Salmonella from iguanas. There are numerous reports of salmonellosis from pet iguanas, including fatal infections. In a study of salmonellosis in people associated with exotic pets, iguanas were the most common source, accounting for over 50% of infections (Woodward et al, J Clin Microbiol 1997) Babies and immunocompromised people are at greatest risk, but infections occur in people outside of these high-risk groups as well.
Disinfection is far from foolproof. Yes, disinfection will kill Salmonella IF (and that's a big if) it's done properly. That includes properly disinfecting all tub surfaces, along with any other areas that were potentially contaminated (e.g. by splashes). This is far from guaranteed to happen in most cases, since people rarely understand what is required for proper disinfection and how to do it.
I'm not saying people should never have iguanas. Some people shouldn't: households with children under five years of age, elderly individuals, pregnant women or immunocompromised individuals. In other households, the risk is lower, but it's still there. An important part of managing the risk is knowing that the risk does exist. Pretending there is no risk doesn't do anyone any good.
Another service animal scam
An Ocean City, Maryland man was told that he couldn't take his pet iguana on the Boardwalk because of a town ordinance banning "undomesticated" pets in public places. Instead of accepting the ruling, he "registered" his pet iguana as a "service animal". Protection of true service animals is critical but the very broad nature of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) has let people get away with claiming that their pet is a service animal simply because they want to take their pet places where they are banned. The ADA just "celebrated" its 20th anniversary at the end of last month.
In this case, the owner will not disclose what his disability is or what the iguana does. That's his right according to the Act, and it lets people get away with anything they want. All he's saying is "You know it's like a cat. You put a cat on your lap and you pet it. It makes you feel good. There's a whole range of disabilities that allows you to do this." That's a pet, not a specially trained animal that is being used for a specific and necessary service activity, such as a guide dog.
The company that he's registered the iguana with is a bit of a joke. The first paragraph on their website states:
It's no secret that many businesses simply aren't pet-friendly, even though most of the population is. A large number of our clients register their dogs as Certified Service Animals or Emotional Support Animals (ESAs) not just to accompany them into stores, restaurants, motels, or on airline flights (for no extra cost), but to successfully qualify for housing where pets aren't allowed. Our Service Dog Certification documents formalize and simplify these processes and make qualifying for special housing hassle-free. If you and your service dog become certified with NSAR, both of you are immediately protected under federal law (ADA).
They're not separating service animals from pets. This is a very important distinction - service animals and pets need to be treated differently. Also, the implication that you have register to have a service animal protected is false advertising, presumably aimed at selling more registrations. You don't need to be registered by this group, or any other, to be a service animal.
To "register" your dog with this group, you have to
- Click a box saying you have a disability. (Their list of disabilities requiring service animals is vague and includes things like asthma and diabetes, to conditions for which I have seen no indication that service animals are useful).
- Click a box saying your dog can fulfill most of their required criteria (it actually says dog, not animal. Therefore, I guess this iguana is registered as a dog).
- Then - and this is the most important step - you send them money.
Fortunately, there's light on the horizon. The following clarification of the ADA has been released, and will take effect in early 2011.
Service animal means any dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability, including a physical, sensory, psychiatric, intellectual, or other mental disability. Other species of animals, whether wild or domestic, trained or untrained, are not service animals for the purposes of this definition. The work or tasks performed by a service animal must be directly related to the handler´s disability. Examples of work or tasks include, but are not limited to, assisting individuals who are blind or have low vision with navigation and other tasks, alerting individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing to the presence of people or sounds, providing non-violent protection or rescue work, pulling a wheelchair, assisting an individual during a seizure, alerting individuals to the presence of allergens, retrieving items such as medicine or the telephone, providing physical support and assistance with balance and stability to individuals with mobility disabilities, and helping persons with psychiatric and neurological disabilities by preventing or interrupting impulsive or destructive behaviors. The crime deterrent effects of an animal´s presence and the provision of emotional support, well-being, comfort, or companionship do not constitute work or tasks for the purposes of this definition.
Cold weather + iguanas = botulism in dogs?
The Associated Press is reporting a concern about botulism in dogs in Florida that might be linked to dead iguanas. The facts are pretty sparse at the moment, and it sounds like both the diagnosis of botulism and the link with iguanas are hypothetical, but it's an interesting story.
Botulism is a very serious, hard to treat and rare disease in dogs. It's also very hard to definitively diagnose, which is one of the problems in a situation like this. It seems that a veterinary neurologist first raised concerns after seeing paralysed dogs (and no evidence of typical causes) and a common history of exposure to dead iguanas.
The recent and prolonged cold weather in south Florida has apparently resulted in widespread death of iguanas (who do not tolerate cold weather). The iguanas presumably didn't die of botulism, but if they had Clostridium botulinum, the bacterium that causes botulism, in their intestinal tract (something that can be common in some animal species), then theoretically dogs could ingest the bacterium or (more likely) botulinum toxin produced by the bacteria in the iguana carcasses after death. Botulinum toxin is extremely potent, and ingestion of even minuscule amounts is enough to cause serious or even fatal disease.
Testing is pending on some of the affected dogs. It would be nice if someone would test some dead iguanas as well, to see if there is really a link. This type of outbreak, however, often passes without a definitive diagnosis because of the difficulties diagnosing the disease. Regardless, keeping your pets away from dead iguanas (and other dead critters) is a good general rule.
Image source: www.cafepress.com
Bathing iguanas - Good ideas done in a bad way
A recent report in the Daily Gleaner discusses the book Iguanas for Dummies. In this book, the author recommends frequent bathing of iguanas because they normally soak in the wild. Bathing iguanas in the tub is also recommended on various websites. Letting iguanas soak in water is a good recommendation for their health, but there are good ways to do this and bad ways to do this. Soaking them in a bathtub (or sink) is a bad idea.
The Daily Gleaner article points out that bathing iguanas in bathtubs when there are children or immunocompromised people in the house is a bad idea, and that a separate bathtub should be used. I'm glad to see the risks of infectious disease to immunocompromised people are considered, however I'd take it a step further.
- Reptiles are high risk pets in terms of Salmonella infection. There is a disproportionate rate of Salmonella infections in people that have contact with reptiles, not just immunocompromised people. Fatal infections are rare, but do occur. People that own reptiles need to be aware of this and take practical measures to reduce these risks.
- Iguanas should never be bathed in the bathtub, regardless who lives in the house.
- Iguana cages should be of adequate size and design so that they can soak in their own enclosure. Otherwise, a container (e.g. a large plastic storage bin) that is only used for bathing the iguana should be used. Waste water should not be dumped in kitchen or bathroom sinks. The container should be disinfected regularly. Hands should be washed immediately after handling the iguana, the container or the waste water.
- Households with immunocompromised people or young children should probably not have iguanas.
More information that is applicable to iguanas can be found in the Turtle information sheets on the Womrs & Germs Resources page. There are also sheets with more information on Salmonella.
