hi, I was just reading through a thread on the ethics of pets and companion animals and read the business about toxoplasmosis as a risk in pregnancy.

there is so much misunderstanding about this protozoal disease! being paranoid abut cats during prgnancy doesn;t make a lot of sense though being reasonable does here';s why:

something like 30% of the adult population, mybe more than that, tsts positive fr prior exposure to toxoplasmosis antibodies, ueually asymptomatically. it IS a danger, n even so much t pregnant women and their fetuses as to the immune impaired; i know people with AIDS and eople who were on immunsuppressive emdication who became seriously ill from toxo...the rest of us have porbably had it already.

if you;lve never worked in an garden and never lived with a cat, it might be something to be worried about. if you;ve been around outdoor soil, outdoor cats, anywhere wild rodents live, , handled raw meat...chances are you've been exposed. get someone else to change the shitty litter box, sure. or better, get your hospital to do a titer to see if you;ve previously been though toxoplasma exposure.
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then forget worrying about it. i've been vegetarian for the past 35 years or so, and feel that;s greatly reduced my risk or exposure to not just tox, but salmonella,clostridium, E coli, and a lot of nasty foodborne disease. (I did get staph food poisoning once at a vegan community holiday meal.

sorry for blabbing on, but maybe it's of use., microbiology was always one of my favorite demanding science classes. I had cats all during pregnancy, home birthing, and raising my baby, wearing gloves and especially washing your hands aby thime you handle anything with shit in it is never a bad idea.