Mom Shares Warning After 8-Year-Old Contracts Nearly Fatal Illness from Playing with Pet Rat
Have you ever considered that Fluffy or Fido may bring death into your home? It sounds extreme, but countless examples of pet owners suffering from sepsis or other afflictions have cropped up.
Now a case out of Southern California highlights how a young girl nearly died from playing with her favorite pet. However, that pet wasn’t your ordinary cat or dog, and it serves as a reminder that owners need to understand the unique risks that their animals can carry.
According to KNSD, an 8-year-old girl named Cali from Menifee, California, loved nothing more than to play with her pair of rats.
These weren’t the slithering sewer creatures that you hire exterminators to kill. Rather, they were pet rats, very tame, and they follow their owners around like little dogs, according to the girl’s mother.
But on May 26, the 8-year-old’s mother, Sabrina (who chose to withhold her last name), brought Cali to the hospital due to the little animals.
The girl’s body had broken out in a horrible rash. In fact, no one could touch her without causing intense pain.
Her temperature had also soared to 104.6 degrees. “It was really scary and really hard to watch,” Sabrina said
What had happened to the girl? Well, she had contracted “rat-bite fever.”
Health reported that rat-bite fever is a disease caused by one of two bacteria, either Streptobacillus moniliformis or Spirillum minus. Those who contract it typically suffer from vomiting, fever, aches and that distinctive rash.
However, the illness can take a while to manifest itself. In some cases, three weeks have passed prior to a person beginning to feel poorly.
With Cali, the disease didn’t actually arise from a bite, either.
According to KGTV, Cali has eczema on her hands, and doctors suspect that the bacteria somehow entered her body through those small breaks in her skin. It’s a possibility that Sabrina wants everyone to remember.
“Parents need to know what the risks are,” she said. “They need to know what the signs and symptoms are.”
She’s right. Rady Children’s Hospital where Cali was treated has seen three cases of rat-bite fever in the past half-dozen years.
According to the San Diego Union-Tribune, 10-year-old Aidan Pankey died from the disease shortly after purchasing a rat from a local Petco store. His passing led to a lawsuit.
Cali’s doctors have urged Sabrina to get rid of her rats in order to prevent any further infections. The mother is searching for someone to adopt the rodents.
“We didn’t want to do it,” Sabrina stated. “It’s not a fun thing to tell your kid you’ve got to get rid of your best friend.”
While rehoming the pets will be difficult for the young girl, it’s the most effective way to make sure there’s not a repeat episode.
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