DAILY MAIL (London, UK) 29 March 08 Baby girl escapes death after contracting salmonella from the family pet snake
A baby girl narrowly escaped death after contracting salmonella from the family's pet snake.
Five-month-old Gabriella Vry spent a week in hospital recovering from the potentially fatal bacteria she caught from a Columbian Rainbow Boa.
Mother Amanda Vry, 34, bought reptile, Reg, for son Jakob's ninth birthday last August while pregnant with Gabriella.
Snakes are known to carry salmonella on their skin when kept in captivity because of their diet and the artificial humidity of their tanks.
Jakob is thought to have picked up a small amount of the germs by stroking Reg and then passed them on to his Gabriella while playing with her.
Ms Vry, a child minder, first noticed something was wrong when her daughter had a fever and was suffering from diarrhoea.
She rushed her from the family home in Castle Bromwich, Birmingham to the city's Heartlands Hospital last month.
Doctors took four days to diagnose Gabriella with salmonella poisoning but were puzzled how she was struck down since she was too young to eat raw or undercooked meat.
It was only when test results showed she had picked up the Pomona strain of the bug - which can only be caught from reptiles - did they realise the snake was to blame.
Gabriella was kept in a intensive care unit and given antibiotics intravenously to treat septicaemia she had picked up from the original salmonella bug.
Luckily the tot battled back to health but nurses later told Amanda that her daughter was lucky to survive.
Ms Vry said : "I'm ecstatic that she is now over the worse but I still have to take for hospital tests.
"She was in so much pain, at one point she had a 40.4 degree temperature, stomach cramps and diarrhoea.
"I took her to hospital but for the first few days the doctors were mystified as to what was causing her all this discomfort.
"Test results came back and showed that Gabriella had contracted salmonella.
"Straight away I went downstairs to an information centre and typed it in to the computer and found it could be picked up by raw or undercooked meat and reptiles.
"Since she was only aged three months old and not yet on solids, it had to be Reg our family snake.
"Reg was bought as a present for my son's ninth birthday and he makes sure the temperature is right and make sure the tank is clean.
"He must have been either playing with Reg or cleaning him or some of the bark in the tank, not washed his hands properly and then started playing with his sister or put a dummy in her mouth.
"It was heartbreaking to see Gabriella is so much distress and because I didn't know what was wrong I couldn't help her.
"One of the nurses told me she was lucky to be alive but she still has salmonella and may continue to be a carrier for the rest of her life."
The mother of four said her husband Robert, a 35-year-old factory worker, had carried out research on keeping reptiles before they bought Reg.
But she claims they were unaware that snakes could carry such potentially life threatening bacteria and is calling for pet shops to have a code of practice.
Amanda added: "If we knew about the dangers beforehand, we would never have bought Reg.
"My daughter would never have been ill and my family would not have gone through sheer hell.
"Jakob has been heartbroken by this, he thinks he's to blame when he isn't. We just were not told.
"I'm angry about this because Gabriella could have died, pet shops should make people aware of the risks with animals such as snakes."
Reg, who lives in a three-foot long heated tank and is fed a diet of dead mice, is now being sold.
Bob Laurence, a warden at West Midlands Safari Park, said hygiene is the most important thing to remember when handling exotic pets.
He said: "People should be aware of the basic risks when keeping snakes and other reptiles and should know the proper precautions.
"Snakes can contract salmonella through various ways, such as fluctuations in temperature in their environment, their diet or even excessive handling.
"They rarely show any visible symptoms of illnesses and shed the bacteria intermittently.
"When someone comes into contact with that snake or indeed its tank or anything inside, they can pick up the bugs and spread them on to others if they fail to wash their hands."
A spokesman for the Proteus Reptile Centre in Solihull, West Midlands, added: "Snakes and reptiles have to be kept warm, they have to have access to water and the tanks they are in have to be a certain size.
"People need to be aware that buying one of these animals is not like buying a dog or cat, they need to make sure they know how to look after them properly.
"They must also make sure that whenever they handle a snake they wash their hands straight away."
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=548134&in_page_id=1770
THE MIRROR (London, UK) 29 March 08 Toddler Gabriella Vry gets foog bug from pet snake - Angry mum raps sellers (Richard Smith)
Toddler Gabriella Vry nearly died after she caught a food bug from her brother's pet snake.
Five-month-old Gabriella spent a week in hospital after she was infected by Reg, a Colombian rainbow boa.
Now mum Amanda, 34, has put the family pet up for sale, saying: "I'm angry about this because Gabriella could have died.
"Pet shops should make people aware of the risks with animals such as snakes."
Amanda bought the reptile for her son Jakob's ninth birthday last August, while she was expecting Gabriella. Jakob is thought to have picked up salmonella germs when he stroked Reg and then passed them on to his baby sister because he hadn't washed his hands thoroughly. Child minder Amanda, who lives in the Castle Bromwich district of Birmingham, said: "She was in so much pain.
"She had stomach cramps, a 40C temperature, and diarrhoea."
The mother of four said she and husband Robert, 35, were unaware that snakes can carry deadly bacteria.
She added: "If we knew about the dangers we would never have bought Reg and my family would not have gone through sheer hell."
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/topstories/2008/03/29/toddler-gabriella-vry-gets-foog-bug-from-pet-snake-89520-20366342/
DAILY RECORD (Glasgow, UK) 29 March 08 Boa Bug Tot Fear
A tot almost died after catching a salmonella bug from her family's pet snake.
Five-month-old Gabriella Vry spent a week in hospital recovering from bacteria caught from Reg, a Colombian Rainbow Boa.
Mum Amanda,34, bought the reptile for son Jakob's ninth birthday last August.
Snakes carry salmonella on their skin when kept in captivity because of their diet and tank humidity.
Jakob is thought to have picked up the germs by stroking Reg - then passed them on to his baby sister.
Amanda, of Castle Bromwich, Birmingham, said: "I'm angry because Gabriella could have died.
Pet shops should make people aware of the risks."
http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/newsfeed/2008/03/29/boa-bug-tot-fear-86908-20366542/
