Zoo visitors 'risking infection'

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Zoo visitors are risking infections by not paying heed to hygiene after touching animals, research suggests.

Canadian researchers sent observers to 36 zoos which allowed people to pet their animals.

Almost all had some sort of hand- washing facility, but less than one in three visitors used them.

The study, published in Clinical Infectious Diseases, also found parents brought along items that could easily pass infection to young children.

You never know when an animal you have touched is contaminated with something particularly bad Dr Scott WeeseUniversity of Guelph

These included baby bottles, dummies and infant toys.

The researchers also found that several zoos featured animals that pose a high risk for transmitting infections, such as newborn calves and baby chicks.

In addition, nearly one-third of animals at the zoos showed signs of ill health, such as skin lesions, or diarrhoea.

Close contact with animals can pose a risk of infections, such as E. coli and salmonella.

Pinning down risk

Lead researcher Dr Scott Weese, of the University of Guelph in Ontario, said it was important that people washed their hands after touching animals.

He said: "If I came across a petting zoo that looked run-down, with no hand hygiene facilities, poor design, beat-up pens, I wouldn't take my family in."

Dr Weese said there was no way to quantify the risks, but stressed that they were probably quite low for a healthy person.

"However, you never know when an animal you have touched is contaminated with something particularly bad such as E. coli O157.

"Outbreaks of serious disease have occurred even with apparently well-operated petting zoos, so one cannot make assumptions about risk."

Dr Weese also warned that even healthy animals could shed a variety of disease-causing pathogens.

Doctor Hamid Mahgoub, from the Health Protection Agency, said: "It is important that people remember to wash their hands thoroughly, especially after touching animals and before eating food.

"Children under five and elderly people are at a higher risk of getting these types of infections, so it's really important that parents make sure that their children wash their hands properly."