>From:    James Spurlock <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: ECE questions
>If I enter an ece infected home or shelter, how easily can it be carried
>home to my ferrets?  This is a new worry for me, as a close friend of mine
>is battling ece for the first time, and I'mhesitant to visit, not wanting
>to risk exposure to mine.
 
I can't answer your question as to how long the virus will remain active on
your clothing, shoes, etc., but I do have some experience with having an
ECE free house AND spending time in an ECE active environment.
 
My ferrets were always ECE free and I have visited our shelter many times.
Our shelter is ECE active.  Not only that, I go there just about every
saturday to scrub litter pans and cages, and I'm always elbow deep in ferret
poop.  One can't get more exposed than that.  I wear shoes that I only wear
to the shelter and they stay in my garage all other times.  When I got home
from the shelter, I stripped butt naked in the garage, put all my clothes
directly in the washer, slipped on a pair of flip flops that I kept in the
garage for that purpose, and headed straight for the shower.  I took a hot
shower, scrubbed my fingernails, washed my hair, and of course all parts in
between.  I didn't even touch the doorknob to come in from the garage unless
I had a towel to wrap around it, even though I had washed my hands before
leaving the shelter.  This went on for months and I never carried ECE back
to my home.
 
About a month and a half ago, my ferrets came down with ECE.  BUT, I had
not been to the shelter in well over a week, perhaps two, and I am 100%
sure that I did not bring it home.  There were two different sources it may
have come from.  Since the general consensus is that the onset of symptoms
is usually around 48 hours after exposure, it's a pretty sure bet it didn't
come home with me a week or two prior, but from one of the other sources,
which exposed my boys almost exactly 48 hours before.
 
Be very careful.  You can go to your friend's and not bring it back to your
house, but you have to practice sanitary procedures religiously.  Most of
all, make sure your friend practices those same procedures so he/she won't
carry it to other ferrets.
 
For the ferrets,
Mike
 
* Michael F. Janke, [log in to unmask]
* Secretary, South Florida Ferret Club and Rescue, Inc.
*
* Visit our web site: http://www.gate.net/~mjanke
[Posted in FML issue 2278]