STAR-BULLETIN / 2000 Bryce Adachi of Aiea found some cuddly friends in the goat pen at the Honolulu Zoo in this file photo.

Isle doctors downplay E. coli
threat of petting zoos

Soap and water are a simple way
to guard against the bacteria

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By Helen Altonn
haltonn@starbulletin.com

With concerns raised that petting zoos may pose a risk of potentially deadly E. coli bacteria infections to children, Hawaii doctors suggest a simple solution: Soap and water.

Parents and schools should be teaching basic hygiene, said Dr. James Marzolf, Epidemiology Branch chief, state Department of Health. "These are animals and if you do touch them and are around feces, they're not clean. I grew up on a farm ... and when we came in, we washed our hands."

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, an international nonprofit organization, has urged the American Academy of Pediatrics to warn parents of dangers to children who pet "barnyard" animals at zoos and fairs.

Dr. Louise Iwaishi, Kapiolani Medical Center for Women and Children pediatrician, who heads the academy's Hawaii Chapter, said she does not know of any significant events related to petting zoos and E. coli in Hawaii. "Fortunately, we've got good families. If they're exposing their kids, they're mindful and supervising handwashing."

She said schools, early childhood care centers, hospitals and the community are urged "to take universal precautions" with adequate hygiene and supervision to break the cycle of disease.

"The dirty hand to the face, the dirty hand to the food, is the primary mode of communication of disease," she said.

Honolulu Zoo has never had any problems with its petting zoo, said Director Ken Redmond. He said the area has a wash-your-hands station at the exit and zoo keepers and volunteers -- as well as a posted sign -- remind visitors to use it.

Infection has been "a long-standing concern of contact with animals and potential ramifications from it," Redmond said. "That's why almost every zoo has a hand-washing station where you have contact with animals."

Children and adults have become ill and even hospitalized with E. coli infection after visiting petting zoos in other states, including Washington, Pennsylvania and Ohio.

The Centers for Disease Control issued six new guidelines last year to reduce E. coli transmission in public animal petting areas and Redmond said Honolulu Zoo "is taking all the proper precautions" to protect its 525,000 annual visitors, many of whom spend time in the petting area.

Dr. Alan Tice, consultant in infectious diseases at the University of Hawaii John A. Burns School of Medicine, said he lived in Tacoma, Wash., when it had one of the first E. coli outbreaks during a state fair.

He said there is a risk but it can be "pretty well ameliorated" if visitors wash their hands after petting animals, avoid contact with feces or fecal-contaminated materials, and animals are not given antibiotics that stimulate growth of resistant organisms.

Marzolf said guidelines to reduce chances of infection from touching animals are "pretty common sense." For instance, don't pet an animal and then stick a sandwich in your mouth, he said.

"If you look at the whole spectrum of outbreaks of E. coli infections in the United States, a very, very small minority of them have anything to do with petting zoos," he noted. Most come from hamburger and meat products, unpasteurized milk and even water, he said, "so the actual risk is pretty small."

One outbreak involved kids who were nail-biters and eating while playing with animals, Marzolf said. "So that's asking for it. I don't know anybody on a farm who is going to sit in a pig pen to eat lunch. If guidelines of CDC are followed, we wouldn't see any outbreaks at zoos."

Redmond said no food is allowed in the Honolulu Zoo's petting zoo.

Amy Rhodes, PETA's animals in entertainment specialist, said health officials across the country are questioning whether petting zoos should be allowed at all. She cites risks to animals from mishandling and irregular feeding by the public.

But Tice and Marzolf said petting zoos are important for children.

"It's an opportunity for children to learn, not only about animals, but also about disease, the importance of personal hygiene, handwashing and a number of other things that relate to good care," Tice said. "You can have problems with your own pets at home, or fish in a tank."