General Care Discussion :: no turtle vet- how to know if my res has salmonella

[fatin]

i got my Res (2 of them) from the pet store where they were packed in a small tank along with about 15 others...i need to know if they have salmonella and if they can be a hazard to my family members, is there a way where i can take precautionary measures? since there's no vet to verify if they have salmonella or not.
my youngest family member is 18, and everyone knows not to touch them or their water, but i just need to feel 100% about my Res's. I am growing fond of these little guys and I don't want to be scared of anything they might pass to my family or myself.

[freshprince2146]

ALL turtles have salmonella. You will be safe because chances of you getting it are very rare.

Just be safe and wash your hands after cleaning the tank to handling the turtle.

[mikee]

f-p-46 Are you sure about that??

[Diamondbacks4Life]

Not all turtles carry salmonella and if the youngest person is 18 then you have nothing to worry about. If you get salmonella it usually just gives you upset stomach. It isnt a very serious thing at all to worry about.

Just wash your hands if you touch anything around the turtle like tank or stand and the turtle itself. Its same as cooking with poultry, ground beef, and eggs. They all ahve a chance there could be salmonella.

[TheComputerGremlin]

Whoa! There is some major misinformation going on here!!

First, ALL turtles and reptiles and animals, really, carry Salmonella. Salmonella work as beneficial bacteria in their gut, so they don't get "sick" from Salmonella.

Second, turtles (and other reptiles/animals) secrete Salmonella when they are stressed or scared. Basically, they lose their bowels. In a happy, healthy, normal animal, there will be no secretion and no worries to the humans. But can anyone 100% say their turtle was never stressed? No. Which is why point #3 exists.

Third, WASH YOUR HANDS EVERY TIME, WITHOUT EXCEPTION, THAT YOU TOUCH THE TURTLE OR TANK WATER. Seriously, do you want to risk getting a really, really bad stomach ache for several days? Just wash your hands. Doesn't matter if there is Salmonella in the water or not, wash your hands. Don't argue with me, WASH YOUR HANDS!!!

Fourth, age is irrelevant. Every human can and will get Salmonella if infected. It just happens that younger humans get it worse and may have major complications from it. It should present in older humans as a really bad stomach flu or food poisoning. However, that doesn't mean that they won't have complications. So, WASH YOUR HANDS. Period.

[mavredes]

I work closely with wildlife, all kinds, and have had alot of training, and the info given about the salmonella from the gremlin is definantly correct. WASH YOUR HANDS regardless. It doesn't matter just take the precaution and do it.

[fatin]

I do wash my hands, every time, and no one other than me comes close to them, but it's just that i am handling them almost every day because i don't have a filter, so every day i have to get them out of the little tank, wash it, put water in it and then get them back. I also don't have a heater, so i change the water twice a day and keep the light bulb on...

we basically do not have any source of advice here, i bought these guys from the fish store because they looked sad and no one told me what to do, i guess when i buy a heater and a filter i'll be handling them less and they'll be less stressed.

but do you not see anything when they loose their bowls when they're stressed? is it invisible?

[jay2487]

fatin is not having the heater and filter a money thing? Or is it because you can't find them in your area? If either are the case I can direct you to some great DIY filter blogs. All it really takes is floss, a second tank or anything that will hold 10 or more gallons of water and a pump. You can also add pieces of clay pots to add more biological filtration area.

[fatin]

it's not about the money, it's just that when i got them -which was totally by coincidence- i asked the guy what they needed and he said nothing but the lousy tank they gave me -which is TINY- and some water. I honestly thought that turtles can take it because they look tough. i found this site a few days ago and i get all my info from here, so this saturday - friday all shops close here- i'm going to buy a tank, a heater, and the UVB light (although i highly doubt we'll have bulbs as advanced as that)
i have a million questions about them and i am worried a lot, the winter here is cold and even though they're inside my house i always need to change the water to keep it warm and i have the light bulb on all the time to keep them warm...i hope they make it till Saturday, the little one 1.5" is not eating- has not eaten ever since i got him and is always sleeping...

and by the way i have not met or even heard of a single person in my town who has turtles who survived more than a few months...

[jay2487]

you can see it when they have a movement yes, but salmonella is to small to see and could be being secreted even if you don't see anything. You should still be careful

[vear]

Fatin: I don't worry about salmonella with my turtle any more than I worry about salmonella when I prepare chicken. I handle my turtle and even stick my hands all the way down to the bottom of the tank to arrange things. I immediately wash my hands/arms. (I also wash my hands and kitchen utensils after working with raw chicken).

The risk with kids is that they like to stick everything in their mouth. Plus they don't usually have the best hygiene and are not going to be careful to wash their hands every time.

I hope you get them the heater, this is most likely why the little one is not eating. And don't panic, just make sure they have the basics and we can keep helping you from there.

[Diamondbacks4Life]

Not all reptiles carry salmonella, that is not misinformation.

Its just most do. You can have your turtle tested ro reptile for it but here is the catch. Most turtles have a high chance that they will become infected with bacteria anyway by what you feed it or by other means of the bacteria finding its way to the turtle. So the test really is a waste of money...so you would wanna follow proper precautions anyway.

[jay2487]

as I understand it Painted all turtles have salmonella, they are not infected with it but produce it like we produce stomach acid

[bradmeisel]

Fatin: I don't worry about salmonella with my turtle any more than I worry about salmonella when I prepare chicken. I handle my turtle and even stick my hands all the way down to the bottom of the tank to arrange things. I immediately wash my hands/arms. (I also wash my hands and kitchen utensils after working with raw chicken).

The risk with kids is that they like to stick everything in their mouth. Plus they don't usually have the best hygiene and are not going to be careful to wash their hands every time.

I hope you get them the heater, this is most likely why the little one is not eating. And don't panic, just make sure they have the basics and we can keep helping you from there.

vear is right on. I place my hands in the tank all the time. Putting my whole arm in to rearrange things as well. You can be totally safe if you wesh your hands every time but I'll admit I don't wash them every time and I have not had any problems.

[fatin]

thank you all! i no longer worry about salmonella, i got a bigger tank with a filter and a heater so i no longer have to handle the turtles a lot! will post some pictures with my new set of questions once i figure out how to use the pics here.
i keep washing my hands just in case though.