The little glassy-eyed creatures may look cute and harmless, but small turtles can make people very ill.
Turtles commonly carry bacteria called Salmonella on their outer skin and shell surfaces.*
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People can get Salmonella by coming in contact with
turtles or other reptiles (lizards, snakes)
amphibians (frogs, salamanders, newts)
the habitats of reptiles or amphibians, like cages, tanks and aquariums
Salmonella can cause a serious or even life-threatening infection in people, even though the bacteria do not make reptiles or amphibians sick. An example is the 2007 death of a four-week-old baby in Florida linked to Salmonella from a small turtle. The DNA of the Salmonella from the turtle matched that from the infant.
People infected with Salmonella may have diarrhea, fever, stomach pain, nausea, vomiting, and headache. Symptoms usually appear 6 to 72 hours after contact with the bacteria and last about 2 to 7 days. Most people recover without treatment, but some get so sick that they need to be treated in a hospital.
*Quoted from a U.S. Food and Drug Administration Consumer Update.
a brightly colored fungus that grows in bark inclusions
