Gonzalo Erdozain writes:

A couple of Saturday’s ago, the clinic I work for in Kansas City held an open house for clients and prospective clients to come and tour the premises, pet a few exotic animals, and even perform an ultrasound on a stuffed frog with bladder problems and surgery on a teddy bear/dog stuffed with candy. Hot dogs, cake and soft drinks were also provided, preferably after the moonwalk, to prevent any unnecessary barfing. As part of my commitment to food safety I was in charge of the handwashing station placed next to the exotic animals’ room.

As usual, kids required some convincing, encouragement from their parents and candy to get them to wash their hands before heading out for some food. Surprisingly enough, kids weren’t the only ones who didn’t know turtles are famous for their Salmonella – as well as reptiles and amphibians in general. It was an opportunity to inform people about the risks involved with having such animals as pets, and help them teach their kids.