Rat lung worm, Has anyone on here heard of this before, it was on our Sunday night program last night, on telly, I couldn't believe how a person can die just from handling snails, or eating vegies that have had snails crawling on them, we have a lot of snails in our garden as I dont use sprays, but I will definately be bagging them up in future and taking them to the ducks down at the lake, and I will be making sure the vegies get washed properly.
Aparently possums can get the disease as well, and we have possums in our garden, and hopefully we have got rid of the rats that were comming from next door.
Depends on what part of the planet you are on. For whatever reason australia was cursed with deadly snakes, octopi, spiders, ants etc. (Do you get tiger snakes or funnel web spiders in your house?)
I used to let my hedgehogs eat snails until I found out about the lung worms. I quit letting the hedgehogs into the garden after that. I used to live in a major metropolitan area in California. There were a lot of snails. Now I live in the high desert in New Mexico. Snails and slugs cannot live in this arid environment.
saved we don't have funnel web spiders in our state only in New South Wales
but we do have red back spiders, white tail spiders and trapdoors, and our deadliest snakes here in this state are the brown, and the death adder, Victoria, have the tiger snakes.
Quote:
Originally Posted by dogwoman
I used to let my hedgehogs eat snails until I found out about the lung worms. I quit letting the hedgehogs into the garden after that. I used to live in a major metropolitan area in California. There were a lot of snails. Now I live in the high desert in New Mexico. Snails and slugs cannot live in this arid environment.
Dogwoman I think we will move to the Simpson desert, here in Aus it should be too hot for anything there
Why the power's that be would want to keep lung worm quiet has got me, as there are so many little children that like to play with and handle slugs and snails, and probably untill now their parent's didn't realise how dangerous it could be.
hi ozzie, I saw that on telly , it amazed me that they didnt want it be known to the general public, it doesn't make sense as to why it should be secret . if people dont know snails carry a deadly parasite how can parents protect there children or any one else.
maybe they are more interested in safe guarding 'escargot' in restaurants
Hey Ozzie
Playing with snails WAS my kids favorite past time until I saw that on the news.
My 3 year old had a few episodes lasting only a day where she would have asthma like symptoms and a very high temp. Of course, each time I took her to the docs she was fine but the day that program was on, she had her 3rd bout of it in 2 weeks. So of to the docs we went again...only to have the doctor laugh at me and say " It's not in WA".
Not a reaction I was expecting from a proffesional, needless to say I'm online trying to find someone who will confirm that for me.
In the mean time, my daughter is going to another doctor on friday, It will be difficult to get anyone to listen because she looks healthy now, but persistence is key in situations like these...Our children are blessings, its up to us to keep them safe.
If anyone can confirm whether it's been found in WA, I would be forever grateful.
hi ozzie, I saw that on telly , it amazed me that they didnt want it be known to the general public, it doesn't make sense as to why it should be secret . if people dont know snails carry a deadly parasite how can parents protect there children or any one else.
maybe they are more interested in safe guarding 'escargot' in restaurants
Audi Thats what I couldnt understand, especially when it would most likely be children that would be harmed.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Theressa
Hey Ozzie
Playing with snails WAS my kids favorite past time until I saw that on the news.
My 3 year old had a few episodes lasting only a day where she would have asthma like symptoms and a very high temp. Of course, each time I took her to the docs she was fine but the day that program was on, she had her 3rd bout of it in 2 weeks. So of to the docs we went again...only to have the doctor laugh at me and say " It's not in WA".
Not a reaction I was expecting from a proffesional, needless to say I'm online trying to find someone who will confirm that for me.
In the mean time, my daughter is going to another doctor on friday, It will be difficult to get anyone to listen because she looks healthy now, but persistence is key in situations like these...Our children are blessings, its up to us to keep them safe.
If anyone can confirm whether it's been found in WA, I would be forever grateful.
Hi Theressa, welcome, I cant help you as far as whether it would be in WA or not but I hope and pray your little girl doesnt have it,and I hope you find a decent Dr that will listen, to you, will be thinking of you, let us know how you get on.
Sounds pretty frightening! Good thing I have always been extremely thorough when washing my veggies.... and of course being careful not to eat any snails. Glad I don't have any children I have to worry about.
Trouble is Pharmato there are a lot of people that don't wash vegies.
We have a green bin collection once a fortnight here where we live and you put in prunnings weeds and veg scraps, and i would imagine a lot of snails would go in to that as well, and it is sent to a compost making company, and then sold to nursery's and store garden shops, and I was thinking the compost could possibly contain that rat lung worm, and we are putting it on our gardens, I only hope its treated to kill of any nasties.
I was just thinking to myself after that show, about whether
I was
We have a green bin collection once a fortnight here where we live and you put in prunnings weeds and veg scraps, and i would imagine a lot of snails would go in to that as well, and it is sent to a compost making company, and then sold to nursery's and store garden shops, and I was thinking the compost could possibly contain that rat lung worm, and we are putting it on our gardens, I only hope its treated to kill of any nasties.
I was just thinking to myself after that show, about whether
I was
commercial composts/potting mix are heat treated to kill off weeds at a higher temperature than a home compost heap would reach
hopefully it would kill off the rat lung worm too if it ever got in there