Disease spread is a serious concern for all animal facilities, including zoos, veterinary clinics, equine stables, dog kennels and more. The last thing you want is an animal – or even a human – to get sick because your animal facility was not properly cleaned with the correct multi species disinfectant.

This article provides information and recommends commercial cleaning products for disinfecting your animal facility and preventing zoonotic disease spread.

Common Animal Diseases and How They are Spread

Zoonotic disease spread is the transmission of an infectious disease between species from animals to humans. Recent spread of zoonotic diseases, including COVID-19 and HPAI (highly pathogenic avian influenza), has further increased the importance of proper disinfection in animal facilities. Other diseases with recent outbreaks, like Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease (RHDV2), are not zoonotic and do not affect humans, yet they have high mortality rates for the affected species.

Diseases are commonly transmitted through direct contact with fluids or tissues of an animal, such as blood, urine, and excrement. They can also be transmitted by inhaling an airborne particle or ingesting contaminated food or water.  The various ways that diseases can be transmitted, especially with the regular direct contact in animal care facilities, underscores the importance of using proper cleaning methods and disinfectant.

Common diseases that your animal facility cleaning products should protect against include parvovirus, distemper, ringworm, rabies, E-coli, salmonella, avian influenza, MRSA, kennel cough, lyme disease, and more. While not a disease, animal facilities should also be wary of ammonia toxicity. When an animal urinates, the liquid can seep into the flooring, bedding and kennels and produce ammonia. Even low levels of ammonia can create a health risk. The animal facility cleaning products recommended below combat both disease spread and ammonia toxicity.

Prevent Animal Disease Spread with Proper Cleaning Methods and Multi Species Disinfectant

To ensure human and animal safety, personnel working in animal facilities should always be wary when intaking a new animal, whether a veterinary patient or a dog kennel. Some long-term facilities have quarantine protocols, especially when introducing animals to others in the stock, in the case of a stable, or exhibit, in the case of a zoo or aquarium. Make sure the living quarters or quarantine area is thoroughly cleaned and disinfected before moving the animal in. The key to cleaning and disinfection is to first remove all visible organic material before the application of a disinfectant. We recommend these ProVet Logic products for cleaning organic material:

• Stable Environment to prevent ammonia buildup and toxicity – stables, equine hospitals, equine breeding centers, livestock stalls, horse race facilities, animal sanctuaries, and more.
• Kennel and Turf to degrade and eliminate organic matter– dog kennels, dog boarding facilities, police dog care units, animal shelters, veterinary clinics, and more.

And we recommend this ProVet Logic product for disinfecting after thoroughly cleaning:

• Multi-Species Disinfectant – wildlife centers, zoos, aquariums, veterinary clinics, pet stores, and more.

*For quick cleaning of surfaces between uses, we also have animal facility disinfectant refillable wipesavailable.

Aside from intaking new animals, always thoroughly clean crates, turf, kennels, and equipment prior to and in between uses – basically every time a different animal makes contact with a surface. If an animal appears or behaves sick, quarantine that animal and then assess symptoms. Make sure to thoroughly disinfect anything the animal came into contact with to prevent any additional exposure.

ProVetLogic Animal Facility Disinfectant is a broad spectrum, moderate pH, hard surface disinfectant that eliminates a wide range of viruses, bacteria and fungi including Canine Parvovirus, Canine Distemper, Kennel Cough, Canine Parainfluenza Virus, Ringworm, and more. We also recommend the ProFoam II Foam Gun Applicator, which attaches to any garden hose, to automatically dilute, dispense, and rinse the disinfectant solution.

Other Methods for Preventing Disease Spread in Your Animal Facility

In additional to regular cleaning and disinfecting of your animal facility, there are other steps that you can take to protect humans and animals from diseases and toxins like ammonia buildup.

Personal Protective Equipment

Wearing gloves is one of the most important things that you can do to prevent cross contamination and disease spread. Nitrile gloves not only protect you, but also the animal that you are handling. Make sure to change gloves between every animal contact and always wash hands thoroughly with soap and hot water after glove use. We know that costs associated with nitrile gloves can add up, so we offer them in a variety of sizes in bulk.

Foot Baths

Foot baths are recommended when entering and exiting an animal facility to prevent the spread of disease and contaminants. We recommend using a bin, like a litter box, to fill with a couple centimeters of multi species disinfectant. Step in the liquid and stand for at least 20-30 seconds to fully disinfect the bottom of the shoes.

Effective Washing Procedures

It is important to thoroughly clean laundry and dishes to prevent cross-contamination. The laundry detergent and dish soap that you can buy at the regular grocery store is usually not strong enough to kill all the bacteria. We recommend using ProVet Logic Pet Laundry Detergent with hot water and half a cup of bleach for soiled laundry and ProVet Logic Super Concentrated Pet Dish Detergent for soiled dishes.

Easy to Clean Tools

Make sure that the tools that you use in your animal facility are easy to clean and disinfect. Stay away from wood and porous materials for your cleaning tools, as they are difficult to thoroughly disinfect. We offer a wide range of brushes, squeegees, and sprayers for effective animal facility cleaning and disinfection.