If your allergies are bugging you, it could be your pet bug
I suppose I should really post this on the "Unusual Pets" section of the blog, but I found it so intriguing I wanted to make sure it was here. This is just for you readers out there who find insects attractive as pets -- namely, the Madagascar hissing cockroach. Turns out these odd little critters harbor various molds that may trigger allergies in humans who handle them.
I've never been around one of them personally, and I've never been able to understand people who would keep as a pet any creature with the word "cockroach" in its name. But that's just me, I suppose. I feel the same way about tarantulas and other creatures that do such things as sting, bite, or crawl along the ground.
(Although, when our kids were young they went through a phase when they both had hermit crabs. After a great deal of groaning reluctance, my daughter persuaded me to let her put the crab onto my palm. He was a fun little guy and I actually got along great with them after that.)
But back to the Madagascar hissing cockroaches. A recent study found they can host as many as 14 different molds, some of which can cause allergy symptoms in humans, and others of which can lead to serious infections if they enter the human body. The study suggests the most important thing to do is careful and constant attention to making sure the critters' cages are thoroughly cleaned.
My suggestion? Get a dog, or a cat, or hamster, bird, even a snake. Why would you want a cockroach as a pet?
Now I suppose I'll hear from all of you out there who have Madagascar hissing cockroaches. So I'll apologize to you in advance. To each their own, when it comes to pets, I say!
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