The risk is a lot lower than the reports lead people to believe, however, that does not mean they aren't there. I take very strict precautions, maybe laughably strict to some people, but I grew up in a medical family, so I have heard the worst case scenarios all my life, so they are bound to leave an impression. My mom's first words of warning when I got a snake was to be so careful of infection if it ever bit me, because she has seen people have limbs amputated from an infected cat scratch. Yes, extreme, unlikely, worst case scenario, but when you see and hear that stuff first hand, you really don't want to be the poor soul who becomes and unfortunate statistic. I am never without peroxide and anti bacterial ointment, just in case.

My salmonella prevention is constant cleaning. Because my apartment is so small, I bleach my counters daily and I do not wash any dishes by hand, they all go in the dishwasher. I have one blanket on the couch that is a designated snake blanket that she is allowed to crawl on and that I lay under while I hold her when I watch T.V. and such. I do a full tank clean every other week, where absolutely everything is bleached. I also will not get into bed in the pajama's I was wearing when I held my snake, I will always change them, even if it means more laundry.

It's not like I treat my snake like she is radioactive, I love her and let her crawl all over me, on the carpet, I just am careful afterwards. The risk is low, but that is no reason to be careless. Salmonella is an awful thing to catch, makes the flu look like a head cold. If you are a healthy individual, you won't die or anything, but it will suck. No thank you. I'll use some bleach.