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 The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said 27 people
had been infected with a strain of Salmonella typhimurium, including
two people who were hospitalized.
Forty-two percent of the patients are children age 12 or younger.
This particular Salmonella strain was identified in samples
collected from 10 hedgehogs in Minnesota, where five cases have been
reported. Other states with reported cases include California,
Colorado, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Michigan, Mississippi,
Missouri, Nebraska, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington
and Wyoming.
The outbreak is similar to a past outbreak of Salmonella linked to
pet hedgehogs in 2013, said Colin Basler, an epidemiologist with
CDC's outbreak response branch.
"This particular strain of Salmonella seems to be widespread in
hedgehogs," he told Reuters Health.
No new cases have been identified since May 31, Basler said.
Salmonella infections usually spread through food contaminated with
animal feces.
The CDC says people coming in contact with hedgehogs can stay
healthy by always washing their hands thoroughly with soap after
touching the animals, and cleaning their pet's toys and supplies
outside of the house.
Such items should be cleaned far away from places where food is
stored or served, the CDC added. Pet hedgehogs should also not be
allowed to roam freely around these areas.
Indeed, hedgehogs are rather messy and often run through their
feces, says veterinarian Krista Keller, an associate professor at
the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine.
Keller advises clients to wash their hands immediately after
handling their hedgehog.
"This recommendation becomes very important when it comes to small
children in the household that may stick objects into their mouth,"
Keller added.
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Kissing or hugging hedgehogs can spread Salmonella germs to the
face, the CDC warns.
Christina Hannigan, public relations co-chair of the Hedgehog
Welfare Society, a volunteer organization that rescues and
rehabilitates hedgehogs bred as pets, told Reuters Health by phone
she has handled "well over a hundred hedgehogs," including one that
was a known Salmonella carrier.
"I never got sick, because all you have to do is what (the CDC says)
- wash your hands," added Hannigan, whose group also provides
educational resources to pet owners.
Domestication of hedgehogs is a relatively new phenomenon. The most
commonly bred species is the African pygmy hedgehog. According to
Hannigan, they were first bred in the U.S. as pets roughly 40 years
ago.
Hannigan says caring for these pocket-sized mammals is different
than for other animals because they are used to hotter climates and
have specific dietary requirements.
Veterinarians can play an important role in ensuring that a hedgehog
is healthy, Keller said.
"Ensuring that your hedgehog is healthy is an important way of
protecting your family from Salmonella," Keller told Reuters Health
by email.
Children under age 5, adults over 65 and people with health problems
or a weakened immune system are most vulnerable to serious illness
from Salmonella, and their families should consider adopting a
different pet, the CDC says.
SOURCE: http://bit.ly/2X9Jnrv CDC Newsroom, online May 31, 2019.
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