Young boy feeding animals at Windmill farm petting zoo at Burscough, Lancashire, UK.
A visit to a local petting zoo? This weekend ritual, a virtual mainstay of summer, can also be an overlooked health hazard. Poor regulation, abysmal sanitation standards, and infected animals can all combine to create a risk where many would least expect it. In the past few years, alarming numbers of dangerous E. coli (Escherichia coli) strains have been found at petting zoos, with a concomitant spike in the number of deaths of children who contracted these bacteria. And, since many petting zoos lack the full-time personnel (including staff veterinarians, groundskeepers, and other trained animal care attendants) found at many big city parks and zoos, the odds are that more outbreaks will occur at these facilities. A report also detailed the cases of 56 people—most of them children—who had contracted E. coli from petting zoos on two farms over a period of a few months. Illnesses associated with these places continue to develop all over the United States and Canada, with an outbreak of E. coli having infected 26 people (including 23 children) at a series of petting zoos and state fairs in Florida. In North Carolina, health officials reported 43 confirmed and 108 suspected cases of E. coli infection in people who had visited a petting zoo at the state fair. 1. Visitors should be made aware that certain farm animals pose greater risk for transmitting infections to humans than others. This would include calves and other young ruminant animals, young poultry, and noticeably sick individuals of any species. 2. Venues should take steps to minimize risk, with clear separation barriers constructed to prevent contact with animals most likely to be infected. 3. Hand-washing stations should be available.
Size: 3413px × 5120px
Location: Burscough, UK
Photo credit: © EnVogue_Photo / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: Yes
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