Is this a toxoplasmosis risk?

[eekmumps]

I went to a wedding at the weekend that was in a marquee in a field. I found out when I was there that the field is normally a sheep field. They had not been in the field for 6 weeks but ewes and lambs has been in the field.

We had to do quite a bit of walking back and forth through the field to the toilets/main house etc despite the rain and DC also ran about in the field a bit (and later on rolled about).

I've since read that toxo lives in soil for up to a year.

Obviously I know about risks from cat faeces and contaminated undercooked meat but what are the risks of catching it from the field. I had strappy shoes on (since chucked as they were beyond saving after walking around in the wet grass) which also rubbed and cut my toe a bit so I had an exposed cut that any infection could have got in. DH also wore his smart work shoes which he's gone off to work in this morning but walked around the house a bit in this morning.

Is there a risk of contamination from this and DCs shoes which we need to put on in a minute to go out?

Grateful for anyone that knows anything about the risk of this? Or if it's so minimal it's not worth thinking about

No. You'll be fine. I never caught it even though I was lambing sheep with toxoplasmosis and I'm a nail biter.

Thanks @ScotsLamb I'm guessing with a user name like that you know a bit about sheep and lambing

Anyone else that's also been hanging out in sheep fields and wondering the same things (I'm sure there are loads of us 😉) then I just found this...

Do you know from your booking bloods if you were immune OP? I was found to be immune which means I must have got it at some point. Definitely not an outdoorsy person (and never been around cats) but do the odd bit of gardening and used to enjoy charcuterie pre pregnancy.

I'd mention it to my MW (because I'm paranoid), particularly if you started having a light fever etc.

I've been tested for it a couple of years ago and was not immune then. I've had cats/ eaten rare steak and got filthy outdoors as a child so I'm guessing the risks are very very low.

Unfortunately one person saying they worked with sheep and didn't catch it doesn't mean its not possible (most people don't suffer sight loss from contact with cat faeces, but sadly a few do).
We stayed at a farm b&b twice -first time I got Ill and we thought it was morning sickness - second time we all got d&v, it turned out to be camphylobacter (nasty bug that environmental health get told about). We were v careful, washed hands a lot, didn't actually touch any livestock - no idea how we got it (and have had nothing like it before or since). And presumably it didn't happen all the time, or people would have noticed!

So, I don't want to sound depressing, but I'd do what you can to check, just because one person doesn't catch something, it doesn't guarantee another won't.

@TennisAtXmas sorry to hear you got ill but am asking specifically about how toxoplasmosis gets transmitted from sheep and if the (now empty) field was a risk.

I know, I was using the example (appreciate its not the same actual infection) to talk in general terms about how one person can get ill though others may not. So anecdotal reassurance from someone who worked with sheep and didn't catch something, shouldn't be taken as evidence that YOU couldn't catch something.

You should get checked.

Hi Eek, I work in this area a bit... there is a risk of contamination through the cut, it's very very tiny, but the risk is there. If you're concerned, go to the GP/midwife & request a test. If, in the very unfortunate case you did have a new infection, the risk to your baby is partly dependent on how far along your pregnancy is. As I say, the risk is tiny though.

I was lambing when fell pregnant with dd. I mentioned it to midwife and they did a blood test and it was fine.

Thanks for all the replies. Everything I have read is about coming into direct contact with sheep during the lambing season. To be clear, I didn't even see a sheep! So I was wondering if anyone knew exactly how toxo was transmitted between sheep and humans. I was initially concerned that I could have put myself at risk because it had been used as a sheep field but I think personally that is irrelevant and any risk of toxo is the normal risk - ie from the soil that could have been contaminated with cat poo or the food at the wedding not being prepared correctly.

As toxoplasma eggs can survive in the soul for up to 18 months, contact with contaminated soil, either through hand to mouth contamination or, in your case, a cut, can occur. BUT, it's a tiny risk. There's lots of things in the soil that could make you unwell, but mostly don't. As I said before, if you're worried or it's bothering you, you should contact your midwife or GP & request a test. But in reality the risk is tiny. In your position I wouldn't be concerned, but that's me!

My midwife wouldn't test my booking bloods for it as I wasn't ill.
If you have flu like symptoms see your dr who will test for toxoplasmosis.
A lot of midwives won't test for it in booking in due to people then knowing they are immune being less careful causing them then to maybe pick up listeria or salmonella.

I know I'm not immune as I was tested a few years ago. Illness is the sign that you have contracted toxoplasmosis.

The only way you can get toxoplasmosis from a sheep is if you eat rare sheep meat (from an infected sheep of course).
You can read more about toxoplasmosis at icatcare.org/advice/cat-health/toxoplasmosis-and-cats as my english is not the best

You catch toxoplasmosis from sheep through contact with infected blood or amniotic fluids. Its not common in sheep, but can be pretty catastrophic when it does put in an appearance. The risk from soil in the situation you describe is minuscule.