Snakes and More!

I couldn't imagine. I think I'll stick with rabbits.

State Tells Child-care Centers to Get Rid of Reptiles
ANNE BLYTHE
The News & Observer of Raleigh
RALEIGH, N.C.

It is not the bite so much but the bug that worries state regulators.

At licensed child-care centers across the state, reptiles are being ushered out of classrooms, not because they are nipping little preschool fingers but because they might carry salmonella - bacteria that can cause severe vomiting, diarrhea, fever and headaches.

At KIN, a preschool in Durham, the new sanitation rule has forced the banishment of a real charmer. Bob, a corn snake that wormed his way into the hearts of many a toddler during his nine years at KIN, had to move to new quarters this month.

Gabriel Hakimoglu, 3 (and a half if he's counting), offered his family's home for his favorite school pet.

The other KIN children had to say goodbye to the colorful reptile. Some were thicker-skinned than others about the new rule, which went into effect Jan. 1.

Tears flowed, and questions flew.

Why, the youngsters wanted to know, were state regulators making Bob leave after so many years with no problems?

Ed Norman, an environmental epidemiologist with the children's health branch of the state Department of Environment, Health and Natural Resources, said the sanitation rules governing licensed child-care centers were reviewed in August.

Public health officials suggested the reptile ban as a way of preventing salmonella outbreaks among a preschool population that can be forgetful about hand-washing.

Most, if not all, reptiles carry salmonella in their intestinal tracts and intermittently or continuously shed the bacteria in their feces.

The bacteria typically do not cause illness in reptiles but can cause serious problems for the elderly and children under 5.

For salmonella to spread from reptiles to humans, the bacteria must be ingested. Simply touching or holding a reptile does not result in a spread of the bacteria.

Norman knew of no major outbreaks driving the rule change.

"We just hadn't modified that particular rule in over 15 years," Norman said.

In February, Norman said, the state Commission for Health Services will review other changes that could affect the state's licensed child-care centers. In addition to the snakes, lizards, turtles and other reptiles often kept as pets, the commission is considering banning amphibians.

Frogs, salamanders, newts and other gilled vertebrates also can carry salmonella.

It's not just critters that trouble epidemiologists. The commission had hoped to rid center playgrounds, decks and fences of certain pressure-treated woods. Until 2003, arsenic was used to preserve wood often used for play structures.

Sealants were applied to keep children and others from coming into direct contact with the poison, but the arsenic leeches out over time, public health officials say. The state Commission for Health Services is recommending that decks, fences and playgrounds built after July 1 not be made from chromated copper arsenate pressure-treated wood.

The commission recommends that an oil-based, semitransparent stain sealant be applied on such wood every two years if it is in an area accessible to children.

Norman said wood industry lobbyists are battling that proposed rule change but he had not heard many complaints about the changes affecting reptiles and amphibians.

Because the regulations are based on a demerit system, Norman said, child-care centers could keep reptiles and amphibians without losing their licenses. But inspectors would have to issue three demerits to centers with pet lizards, snakes and other reptiles, Norman said.

KIN administrators did not want to take the risk.

Gabe's mother, Linda Guzynski, said Bob is settling into the new confines after spending one night hidden in the couch.

Guzynski rearranged the family living room to make room for the terrarium that holds the 5-foot-3, 11-year-old snake that won her son's fancy.

"Bob is an excellent creature," Guzynski said. "He's very gentle, he's sweet and has a great energy."