Pet and animal safety tips for new parents

We are paging Dr. Paul to talk pet safety for your babies and small children.

Pets can provide families with an abundance of joy, but the medical officer of health and CEO of the Eastern Ontario Health Unit says parents should take some precautions when they have both an infant and an animal at home.

Dr. Paul Roumeliotis, A.K.A. Dr. Paul, joined CTV’s Your Morning Ottawa on Wednesday to offer some advice for new parents with pets at home.

“It’s really it’s fun. It’s great but just be leery of some of those dangers,” he said. “The younger the child, the more careful you should be around the pets, in petting zoos and in the home setting.”

Introducing your newborn to your pets

Even for families with the most well-behaved pet, Dr. Paul says it’s important to be cautious when introducing them to newborns.

“Be careful, we’ve seen pets, even if they’re not mean, they’re kind but they’re big and they can injure small babies. So, just be careful of that,” he said.

Dr. Paul says parents should never leave their infants alone with animals. When bringing a newborn into the home, Dr. Paul suggests keeping the pet in a separate section of the home while they get adjusted to the new presence.

“You’ve got a pet that’s used to being alone, there may be some jealousy there, right?” he said. “So, you’ve got to be careful and leery of that. So, never leave the pet alone with a new baby. Perhaps put the dog in the kennel, put it somewhere, just a couple of days.”

Hand washing and food preparation

Dr. Paul says frequent handwashing is important for both parents and infants when dealing with pets.

Hands should be washed after petting your animal and before touching your infant, and children should also wash their hands after coming into contact with the pet.

One thing that people don’t often consider is that pet food can be contaminated with bacteria like salmonella, Dr. Paul says.

He says all pet owners should wash their hands after handling any type of pet food to help prevent contamination. Dr. Paul also says pet owners should avoid washing their pet’s dishes in the kitchen sink.

“When you’re cleaning the dishes, the bowls, try to do it outside of the kitchen sink because you’ll contaminate the kitchen sink. So, do it in the bathroom or something like that,” he said.

Lastly, Dr. Paul recommends leaving pet food out of reach from children, both so that they avoid potentially harmful bacteria and because pet food can be a choking hazard.

Visiting the petting zoo

Much like when dealing with pets at home, Dr. Paul says it’s important to practice regular handwashing when interacting with animals at the petting zoo.

“When you have young children, make sure that you wash your hands after the contact. Make sure that they don’t go close to hug them or kiss them, those types of things,” he said.

There are contamination risks even when children don’t come in direct contact with the animals, Dr. Paul says.

“Do not eat, or chew gum, or for that matter, feed a baby, or put a pacifier in the baby’s mouth in front of the animals because that can contaminate them,” he said.

Once you’ve returned from the petting zoo and have removed your shoes, Dr. Paul suggests washing your hands once more, as footwear can pick up potentially harmful bacteria.

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