I was visiting a friend who mentioned his cat had started to poo inside when this was a clean cat. It was because he could not move easily, he would clean up in the morning. I was horrified since the other person living there had a baby granddaughter that would visit.
Naturally I cleaned it up straight away and disinfected the area, so it was clean. Having animals and small children it is important that trays are kept clean and out of reach of very small children.
What are the dangers of feces?
A person that ingests animal feces may be at risk of contracting number of viruses, bacteria, or parasites. Parasites are tiny organisms that can live in the intestines of humans and animals. If feces are ingested that has a parasite, they themselves can contract the infection.
Feces is an important source of germs like Salmonella, E coli 0157 and norovirus that cause diarrhea. It can spread some respiratory infections like adenovirus which the illnesses can range from the common cold to pneumonia, croup, and bronchitis. Depending on the type, adenoviruses can cause other illnesses such as gastroenteritis, conjunctivitis, cystitis, and less commonly neurological disease. Or hand-foot-mouth disease, the common infection causes mouth ulcers, plus spots and blisters on the hands and feet, it mainly affects children.
Painkillers and mouth ulcer gels or sprays may help to reduce pain.
The worms in poo usually die or pass out in the poo within a few months. Rarely the worms can spread to parts of the body such as the liver, lungs, and eyes. This can lead to serious problems like difficulty breathing or loss of vision.
All feces contain bacteria that can cause stomach upsets. But the greatest risk is from toxocariasis which is an infection transmitted from animals to humans caused by the parasitic roundworms commonly found in the intestine of dogs and cats which is particularly hazardous to small children as it can result in blindness.
