Skip the lickin' and just call in and lie. Then you can actually enjoy your day off! (Not that I condone lying....)
With boys, 6 and 3 yrs olds, we keep the hand sanitizer by the tanks to make sure they clean up. I use it, too, but make sure I wash my hands before preparing/eating any food.
Bummer! Sorry to hear that. Could have been a coincidence, but you never know. Guess that's why the hand washing helps - it will also wash off other germs from the outside world.
All, just don't kiss your snakes. Ahem, I mean, read the thread I posted on that, and you'll get a laugh - or maybe not.