• Hello!

    Either you have not registered on this site yet, or you are registered but have not logged in. In either case, you will not be able to use the full functionality of this site until you have registered, and then logged in after your registration has been approved.

    Registration is FREE, so please register so you can participate instead of remaining a lurker....

    Please be certain that the location field is correctly filled out when you register. All registrations that appear to be bogus will be rejected. Which means that if your location field does NOT match the actual location of your registration IP address, then your registration will be rejected.

    Sorry about the strictness of this requirement, but it is necessary to block spammers and scammers at the door as much as possible.

Immune Defficiency + Snake

livedeht

livedeht

New member
Hey Guys, I know this sounds like a weird topic in a snake forum but its something I need to vent about. Me and my boyfriend have snake that we just bought about 3 weeks ago, and while we bought it, his mother was in the hospital for a non serious transplant. Now that she is back, she tells my boyfriend that he must move our snake because of these pills that shes on which lower her immune system. She says that the doctor said that snakes are really bad for caring bad bacteria on them, and even though my boyfriends room is cut off from the rest of his house, with no ventilation travelling between the rooms, they still think that some how those bacteria are going to get to his mom. The thing that I don't understand is if she cant handle bacteria from a snake, how come she can go out to public places, like malls and such, where the place is covered in peoples nasty bacteria.... just makes me upset because I'm not sure if my parents will let me bring the snake here and me and my boyfriend both adore the snake, but we're still going to talk to my mom about it tonight, so wish us luck :cry: I would post some pictures of Silas, but I'm not sure how to decrease the size of my photos, sorry.
 
It may not be valid, and it may be a crappy deal, but if she pays the rent, she calls the shots. :shrugs: Hope you can keep it.
 
I know that you are concerned for your new pet but I think that you need to keep a few things in mind. I am not sure that I can think of any transplant that is "not serious". Being on drugs that impair your immune system is very serious. Your boyfriend could carry salmonella from his snake and not be affected but he could potentially transmit is to his Mom and she could get very sick. You are absolutely right that public places are full of bacteria and viruses but she does have a right to try and lead as normal a life as possible. And while her docs may be overreacting to the threat that the snake poses, should she really have to increase her risks for a non vital household member?

If she has had to undergo a transplant I would venture to guess that she has already endured plenty, why make her feel like she is the bad guy for trying to give herself the best chances at a healthy life?


Joanna
 
For what it is worth, I have a close family member with HIV. She has handles my snakes, and also my lizards and frogs when I had them. She took the same precautions we all should. Don't lick them, and wash thoroughly and/or use sanitizer freely after handling.
However, this is her choice. While I think the risk is minimal, as has been said, it is your b/f mother's home and she has the right to do what she needs to feel safe. The stress of worrying about the dangers could be more harmful than anything in her compromised state. May be once she is recovered she will let your snake return. In the meantime, make the proper arrangements to make both of them happy and comfortable :).
 
Sorry to hear of a bad situation for all of you. But I have to agree. The risk may be minimal, compared to all of the other possible hazards for his mom. But there have been some cases of disease such as Salmonella caused by snakes, and those at risk are people such as his mom, with lowered immune systems. I am sure he would feel just TERRIBLE if she let him keep the snake, and then she actually DID contract an infection that was traced back to the snake.

Perhaps you can find a friend who can take the snake for a while, or even permanently, but allow "visitation" rights. Then when he is ready to move into his own place, he can get whatever pets he wants without the small, but real, possibility of causing harm to his mom.

Good luck to everyone in that stressful situation!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top