Six ongoing Salmonella outbreaks that have sickened a total of 248 people in 34 states have been linked to illegal pet turtles, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Almost 70 percent of those who became ill were children under the age of 10.
It is precisely because of Salmonella risk , especially to young children, that the Food and Drug Administration banned the sale and distribution of small turtles as pets in 1975. Turtles with shells shorter four inches should not be purchased as pets or given as gifts.
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