As stated in this article, when people don't wash their hands and don't disinfect the surfaces in their homes they can get sick. In this case the idea that someone can "catch schizophrenia" can sound kind of silly.
If this is true, it's important to get the facts out into the general public.
The one sound my wife doesn't like is the distinctive "i've killed a mouse and i'm bringing it to you". Our hundred year old house does get mice, although not for long.
The one sound my wife doesn't like is the distinctive "i've killed a mouse and i'm bringing it to you". Our hundred year old house does get mice, although not for long.
Eeeeeeeeek!!! *stands on a chair*
Worse than that sound is the heavy silence that says :"I HAD a mouse...It was NEARLY dead...now where did it go???"
But in all seriousness, you should wash your hand thoroughly and/or wear gloves while cleaning out the cat litter. Cat feces commonly have toxoplasma gandii in it, a parasite. This is why pregnant women are advised to not change the litter box. Acute toxoplasmosis in most healthy adults in children can resemble a brief flu like illness or have no symptoms at all and lay dormant in your body. Research shows that the parasite can affect you dopamine chemistry which in a select group of people can mimic symptoms of schizophrenia. The medical community believes this to be rare. Just wash your hands and wear gloves!
This post discusses the real issues. Please read one more time if you did not absorb it the first time and if cleaning the litter box, use gloves and wash your hands.
It would be good to see the quality of the research related to this hypothesis. I never wear gloves when changing my cat's litter and I don't have schizophrenia and I'm really happy!
It could be that more people who have schizophrenia naturally choose cats at pets for some reason or another. Maybe because cats aren't very social and neither are schizophrenics. But even remotely considering that your cat or any other animal could give you schizophrenia is asinine.
poppycat, ADN, BSN
856 Posts
I bet you didn't even try!