Pets

• Wash your hands after handling or patting the pet
• Wash your hands before meals
• Your child should not clean out the pet's places, including litter trays, fish tanks and bird cages
• Most pets are suitable according to the age of the child, although some playful pups (and other pets) can scratch or bite. If the child is bitten or scratched, then the wound should be washed well with cool running water, cleaned with an antibacterial agent and covered if necessary with clean gauze. Ring the Children's Cancer Centre for further advice.
• Maintain pet immunisation and regular worm medication as per animal schedule
• Ensure pets have no ticks or fleas, keeping their coat healthy with regular brushing or cleaning
• Pets should not be allowed to hunt of feed from rubbish bins and should be maintained on a commercial diet for their species. Other food such as eggs, poultry or meat products should be adequately cooked and water should only be taken from sources that are fit for animal consumption
• It is not ideal to allow pets to sleep on your child's bed
• When visiting households with a pet the same precautions apply, regarding hygiene and pet health
• Children on chemotherapy treatment should avoid animals like reptiles (snakes, lizards, geckos and terrapins), wild birds and non human primates such as monkeys
• Regular contact with horses is not recommended, particularly grooming and mucking out stables
• Birds can carry disease. Don't keep caged birds inside and don't let your child clean out the cage
• Limited contact with farm animals are allowed, however take care of good hygiene and footwear
• Check with your Consultant Oncologist for the right time to get a new family pet