Reptiles Cause lung problem? EMERGENCY

Tortoises are outside with hay but its changed about every 2 weeks just to be fresh. But inside they are on newspaper. Don't breed mice but do use them for the snakes and yet they are somewhere else now. I guess thats why I am asking, I know people have alot more reptiles than I do so unless this is something that I am just sensitive to (like the bird thing) but I would feel that someone or something would have come up about this before now. I have 2 sulcattas, 1 russian, 6 iguanas, 4 beardies, 3 geckos. I have had frilled dragons, water dragons as well. I have been keeping reptiles and had a pet shop for about 6 years and closed the pet shop about a year and half ago or so. But I am getting alot to think about. My other concerns is for those around me that are helping out with the cages and stuff while I have been being distanced. Still with all the vast amount of reptiles and reptile keepers my search is for anything or anyone that has ever heard or had something like this.

I'm not familiar with wipe out, but bleach is pretty harsh (though I probably run stronger than 10% since I don't measure). The finer the spray, the more likely it is to cause you problems. Chlorhexidine diacetate is a killer, for me at least (I don't have problems with C gluconate).
Inhaling dust/debris when cleaning cages could be a factor, various substrate issues (heck, even paper molds), and countless non reptile issues could be involved. How long had you had the bird?

The pet store would have exposed you to a lot (assuming you had birds, small animals, reptiles, etc)...and, again, this isn't something that just goes away or gets better when the source is removed. Once the scarring occurs, it progresses; and the extent of your difficulties can be influenced by a variety of factors.
(I apologize for being blunt, but I'm assuming that you've heard this before since it isn't a new issue)

Originally Posted by kmarsh

Still with all the vast amount of reptiles and reptile keepers my search is for anything or anyone that has ever heard or had something like this.

I've never heard of this either...not from reptiles anyway. In the past I've been in contact with several big time breeders who own hundreds and even thousands of animals. They even have their children helping them out in their facilities. If this was a concern then they would take a lot more precautions. This is definitely the first time I've heard of this as being possibly linked to reptiles. You should grill the doc a bit more. I mean "Oh yes definitely the reptiles" is a pretty matter-of-fact statement...he must have some reason for believing that.

There is a vet student on this forum who I've been exchanging E-mails with. I'll send him a link to this thread, maybe he can help out. As a vet who will be in direct contact with reptiles for years and years...if there was any issue of them as being a cause of lung disease then he would have been warned about it. Hopefully he can shed some light on this.

Thanks Mr. Moore for the help and advise. Also thanks to everyone else as well for your thoughts and advise. That is why I brought it here. Get answers, suggestions and to also let others think too about what we all do as keepers. The birds were in the pet shop and if I had to pick a spot that would be the best one. I had it for about 3 years and yes I had several birds there. The one I have now is a cockatiel but is being rehomed today. The funny thing is that during the pet shop ownership, I never had a problem and have been rid of it for a actually 2 years now. Just wondering why the problems now. Also maybe it took that long to catch up with me. I can take that answer, just cant take getting rid of the reptiles. I did grill the doc over the reptiles and he can not give me a answer as to why he feels that way except that there is the possiblity of it being the cause and he wants to start eliminating anything that could be a possiblity. But just picking something isn't a good enough answer for me. I want proof. I want cases of others with the problems and I feel more inclined to beleive it could be a after effect from the petshop with the birds than my reptiles now.

Hi again Kathy....since you need to avoid perfumes,aerosol sprays and cleaning agents,like ammonia and bleach...whoever is doing the cage cleaning should use something other than a spray bottle,because the irritants will be in the air no matter who is doing the cleaning. I don't use bleach for cleaning...I use red wine vinegar [ according to WHO it is 100 times stronger than bleach and is used in Africa where they have diseases like cholera] and I dilute with water and small amount of dishwashing liquid. Much less toxic for the animals as well. Just use a small bucket instead of spraying. Does anyone in your house smoke? That should be a no-no as well.

Thanks Angie and we will make that change to the vinegar today but no smoking around me is allowed anyway because of the oxygen but I have never really had alot of smokers around me. I appreciate all the help and advise. Just looking at all the angles and passing it back to the doc as I get more here. Not one to back down from the fight.

Originally Posted by angie.h

Hi again Kathy....since you need to avoid perfumes,aerosol sprays and cleaning agents,like ammonia and bleach...whoever is doing the cage cleaning should use something other than a spray bottle,because the irritants will be in the air no matter who is doing the cleaning. I don't use bleach for cleaning...I use red wine vinegar [ according to WHO it is 100 times stronger than bleach and is used in Africa where they have diseases like cholera] and I dilute with water and small amount of dishwashing liquid. Much less toxic for the animals as well. Just use a small bucket instead of spraying. Does anyone in your house smoke? That should be a no-no as well.

I use white vinegar or apple for cleaning around the birds..not sure if Wine vinegar would have the same benefits.

I currently use diluted bleach for cleaning the snakes..and have been thinking seriously about switching to the more natural vinegar cleanser. Right now, I use hospital masks to protect me from most of the Aspen substrate flybys and bleach smells

In hind site and reading alot of this I can see things I would do differently and hope that others take notes. Beleive me its not worth the risk of a lung disease or problem not to take these precautions. I do hope that others see this as well. Such as Mask's, vinegar versus bleach, ( although everything I read back then suggested the bleach, I am beginning to beleive that that the vinegar may have been best) wash not spray. Also the use of the Aspen for the pet shop with the mice a mask would have been better with that too probably.

I worked in pulmonary critical care for two years and not single patient was diagnosed with ILD/IPF due tol sole ownership of an reptile. That's not to say it wasn't a contributing factor in the progression of the disease.

Have they ran blood work to check for toxins in the blood?

Radiology reports??

Lung biopsies?

Has your home been checked for molds and other things?

Most moderate - severe cases of ILD/IPF are caused from chronic lung infections, chronic pneumonia and a host of other things. A lot of patients living close to industrial companies have these type of issues due to toxic air being near them that they've inhaled constantly.

Exactly how long have you been diagnosed with this?

Has it just returned over the last year or so and is progressing?

Sorry just looking for more information. I may be able to help by speaking with the pulmonologists I know who are some of the top rated in the nation. The more you feel comfortable telling me the more information I can relay as long as you're ok with that.