Answer: The basic method of controlling the spread of zoo noses to man are the same as for controlling the spread of disease between cats though, with the exception of vaccination against rabies, immunization is not available.
Cats which are discovered to be infected should be treated wherever possible, and/or isolated, depending upon the dangers inherent in the transfer of the disease. With rabies, isolation on suspicion and euthanasia if signs appear are advisable, and in many countries mandatory. Where treatments are relatively innocuous, such as worming, these may be carried out routinely as discussed previously.
Hygienic precautions are also of great important to break the chain of transference at as many points as possible. The hands should be thoroughly washed after handling cats and before putting the hands to the face or in the mouth, for example before eating. This applies particularly to young children. Cats should not be allowed to lick the face, or to sleep with humans or on their beds. Also cats should not be allowed to lick plates and utensils used for human food, and their own feeding bowls should be washed separately from crockery and cutlery used by humans.
Children’s sandpits should be covered not it is use to prevent them being used as a litter trays. Latter boxes should be changed daily and the cat’s faced ideally burned, although this should not be carried out by a pregnant woman. It is advised that a pregnant woman should avoid looking after a cat, and should wear gloves for gardening to avoid possible contact with Toxoplasma. These recommendations may appear extreme, but they have been suggested as measures to reduce the hazards of Toxoplasma infection in pregnancy.
Cats should be fed only dried, canned or cooked meat to avoid infecting the cat with parasites which in turn could be acquired by man. Also to destroy Toxoplasma in its infective form, all meat for human consumption should be adequately cooked, and hands that been in contact with raw meat should be well washed with soap and water. Finally, although it is difficult to destroy the stick roundworm eggs of cats, they can be removed from the environment by thorough scrubbing of effected surface with hot detergent solution followed by a thorough rinsing down.
