Pet Turtles Carry Salmonella, CDC Warns

by Kirsten Taylor (Subscribe to Kirsten Taylor's posts): Oct 28th 2009 @ 5:00PM Filed Under: Exotic Pets

Handle me with care! Reggie35/Flickr

Thinking about adopting a pet turtle? The shelled reptiles now come with a warning. A recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report found that 107 people became ill with salmonella in 2007 and 2008 after coming into contact with turtles, Yahoo News reports.

Salmonella cases linked to turtles occurred in 34 states. Fortunately no one died from the illness, but a third of the infected people had to be hospitalized, according to Yahoo News.

Most people associate salmonella infections with contaminated foods (like the tainted peanut butter that caused an outbreak last January). But many pet owners don't realize that the disease also occurs naturally in turtles, reports the CDC. The reptiles can carry the salmonella without getting sick or showing any signs of infection -- and the bacteria can easily spread to people who handle the animals.

In humans, salmonella can cause diarrhea, fever, headache, nausea and vomiting, and can sometimes be fatal -- especially for young children, the elderly, and people with weak immune systems, the CDC reports. The agency recommends that families with kids under five should not keep turtles as pets.

In fact, there's a 1975 ban on selling turtles smaller than 4 inches in length, reports the CDC. Still, many mini turtles are sold illegally, and turtles big and small are growing in popularity. The number of pet turtles in the U.S. doubled from 950,000 in 1996 to almost 2 million in 2006, according to Yahoo News.

If you can't give up your pet turtle, take precautions to keep salmonella at bay. The CDC recommends washing hands thoroughly with soap and water after handling a turtle, its cage or (obviously) its droppings. Don't let your turtle roam freely around the house, and -- shouldn't this go without saying? -- don't let him swim in the kitchen sink or climb on areas where food is prepared, the CDC says.

We can't deny that turtles have a lot of charm. But if you're a turtle lover, handle with care. The CDC says it best: "Remember, turtles are cute, but contaminated."

Tags: bacteria, CDC, illness, outbreak, salmonella, sick, turtle