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Manny lining up his putt.  Happy Sunday!!!

What would happen to your pet in an emergency?

Would they be safe?  Get the ASPCA's Free Safety Pack.

Hundreds of cruise passengers hit with stomach illness

Hundreds of cruise passengers hit with stomach illness

Just an FYI.  Remember we talked about Norovirus.

Campylobacteriosis

I came across this article Pennsylvania health department says more people may have been sickened by raw milk.   The illnesses were caused by a bacteria call Campylobacter, so I thought we'd briefly talk about Campylobacteriosis.

Campylobacteriosis is a bacterial disease most commonly caused by Camylobacter jejuni.  It is a major cause of foodborne illness, estimated to affect 2 million people in the US every year.

How do you get it?

It is found in the feces of clinically healthy poultry, cattle, swine as well as dogs and cats.  Poultry is a major reservoir and virtually all chicken and turkey contain the organism.

Sources of contaminated food include  

• Undercooked poultry, pork, shellfish
• Water
• Raw (unpasteurized) milk and milk products
• People can also get Campylobacter by coming into contact with infected animals feces

Clinical signs in humans

• High fever, nausea, abdominal cramps, profuse watery diarrhea
• Typically lasts 5 to 7 days
• Deaths are rare
• In rare cases it can lead to a syndrome called Guillain-Barre, which is a nervous system disease that causes progressive muscular weakness of extremities that can lead to paralysis 

Prevention

• Pasteurization of milk and milk products – there is a reason why we do it!
• Proper treatment of drinking water
• Proper cooking of foods of animal origin - All poultry should be cooked to reach a minimum internal temperature of 165 °F.
• Proper washing of hands while handling raw food and avoid cross contamination
• Proper washing of hands after contact with animals and animal feces

 

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Daily Digital

Happy Saturday!  Love Jude

Cat Scratch Disease

What is Cat Scratch Disease?

Cat scratch disease is a bacterial disease caused by Bartonella henselae.  Fleas transmit the infection to cats.  Approximately 40% of cats carry Bartonella henselae with kittens being the most common.  Cats infected with B. henselae do not show any signs of illness.  It is transmitted to humans from cat bites and scratches. About 90% of cases involve children and adolescents.   

Clinical signs in people

It is usually a mild disease in healthy people with an infection at the point of injury, swelling of lymph nodes around the head and neck and occasionally a low grade fever.  The signs generally resolve on their own without treatment.  However in rare cases people with compromised immune systems can develop more serious symptoms such as neurological signs.  

Please call you family doctor if you notice 

• A cat scratch or bite that is not healing
• An area of redness around a cat scratch/bite that continues to get bigger
• Fever that lasts for several days after a cat scratch/bite
• Painful and swollen lymph nodes
• Bone or joint pain

Is my cat infected?

There are tests available to detect Bartonella heselae.

Prevention

• Don’t give up your cat!  This is a relatively rare condition and there are common sense methods to prevent the disease
• Cat owners should 
• Avoid rough play with cats - most cat scratches/bites come from cats that are provoked
• Do not allow cat to lick any open wounds
• Wash hands after association with cat
• Flea control is very important since transmission among cats occurs by flea bites

Typhoid Fever

If you read my article on Salmonella yesterday, you might be asking yourself well what about Typhoid fever.  I didn’t mention Typhoid fever because Salmonella Typhi causes it, which is not zoonotic.  However, I feel like I jipped you so I will briefly talk about it. 


Typhoid fever is a life threatening illness, which is not common in the US but still very common in developing countries.  In the US there are about 400 cases each year with the majority acquired while traveling outside of the US. 


It is an infection that can be prevented by vaccine, good hygiene and treated with antibiotics.  If you're planning on traveling outside of the US notify your physician to find out what steps you need to take to protect yourself.


Asymptomatic Carriers


The interesting and perhaps scary thing about Salmonella Typhi is that there are people who can recover from an infection but remain asymptomatic carriers of the bacteria and continue to shed.  Ever heard of Typhoid Mary? She was a cook and the first person in the US to be identified as an asymptomatic carrier and is believed to have infected about 53 people, 3 of whom died.  She was quarantined twice by public health officials.


How do you get it?


Typically if you consume food or beverages that have been handled by infected people or if sewage contaminated water is used for preparing food or drinking


What are the symptoms?

• High fever - 103F - 104F
• Abdominal pain
• Weakness
• Anorexia
• Some develop a rash

How to avoid typhoid fever?

• Get vaccinated if you are traveling to a country where typhoid is common
• Avoid questionable food and drinks
• Avoid drinks with ice
• Eat food that has been properly cooked
• Avoid raw fruits and vegetables that can’t be peeled
• Avoid street vendors

What do you do if you think you have typhoid fever?

See a doctor immediately.  If you’re traveling call the US consulate for a list of recommended doctors.

Daily Digital

I adopted my cats Manny and Aurora during my first year of vet school.  Neither of them is very social with people other than myself.  Aurora will make an appearance from time to time but Manny has become almost a mythical creature to my friends and family.  I assure you he does exist.

In vet school his favorite hiding place when anyone came over was one of my desk drawers.  It had a hole in the back, which made for an easy and stealth entrance/exit.

There's no drawer for him where I live now.  So this is his current hiding spot, which is the very very very top shelf of my closet.

I love you Manny.  Sorry I just gave away your hiding spot!

Salmonellosis

There has been two recent multistate outbreaks of Salmonella.  One caused by Salmonella Typhimurium linked to ground beef, with 20 people so far being infected.  The outbreak has been linked to ground beef purchased from Hannaford Supermarkets.  Another outbreak associated with Salmonella enteritidis linked to eating food from a Mexican-style fast food restaurant chain.  With these recent outbreaks I can’t think of a better time to discuss Salmonella.

What is Salmonellosis?

Salmonellosis is an infection caused by a bacteria called Salmonella (gram negative rod shaped bacilli).  There are more than 2,400 different variations or serovars of Salmonella that have been identified and cause disease in humans.  However, S. typhimurium and S. enteritidis account for the most illnesses in humans in the US.

Is it common?

In the United States alone there are at least 40,000 cases reported every year.  Keep in mind these are only the reported cases experts believe that there are between 400,000 and 4 million infections each year.


Clinical signs in people

• Diarrhea, fever, abdominal cramps, nausea typically for 2 to 7 days 
• Most recover without treatment but in some the diarrhea can be so severe that they require hospitalization.  These individuals are at risk of the bacterial infection spreading through out the body which can cause death unless properly treated.  
• Infections are most severe in the young, elderly and people with impaired immune systems 

How do you become infected?

Salmonella live in the intestinal tracts of animals, birds, reptiles and humans.  Salmonella infections are zoonotic.  Most infections are usually the result of people eating food that is contaminated with animal feces.  Foods involved typically include feces-contaminated beef, poultry and pork, gravies, eggs, milk and milk products, shellfish and fish.  Proper cooking of food kills Salmonella. However, infected food handlers can also contaminate food.

Pets and Salmonella

Salmonella can also be found in the feces of pets especially if they eat a raw diet.  This is why I do not recommend ever feeding your pet a raw diet.  Unfortunately, raw diets have become popular with the idea that a raw diet more closely resembles the natural diet that the feline and canine body is intended to consume.  However, cooking food is what removes parasites and bacteria from food.  Studies have found that the majority of dogs eating raw diets are shedding Salmonella in their feces.  Even if these dogs are asymptomatic for infection they are shedding Salmonella, which puts people and other animals at risk for infection.   

Clinical signs of dogs infected with Salmonella are very similar to human infections and include fever, diarrhea, lethargy, anorexia, vomiting and just like people they are at risk for sepsis.  Dogs can also be chronically infected with Salmonella.  Dogs become infected the same way people do and the young are generally more severely infected.   

Reptiles and young birds are another important source of Salmonella, so make sure you wash your hands after handling any turtles, lizards, snakes or birds.  Children under 5 years old should now own reptiles.  Remember infections are most severe in young children.     


Prevention

• Cook your food thoroughly
• Do not consume raw eggs or milk
• Wash your hands as well as kitchen surfaces and utensils immediately after contact with raw meat/poultry
• Wash your hands after contact with animals, especially reptiles and birds  

For more information on Salmonella and the recent outbreaks please visit CDC.