Alternatives/ ideas to using exam gloves when caring for ferals?

[marmoset]

Right now I can't get a hold of gloves. We have 8 indoor cats and a couple of ferals outside. I did use nitrile/ latex or polyurethane gloves regularly to clean up after foster cats, trapped ferals etc. But now I can't find boxes of gloves anywhere. For my personal cats (again 8) I am using doggie poop bags to clean up messes but it's hard to wash boxes with them- obviously.

What is everyone using? I'm leaving the last remainders of my box of gloves for when we go out shopping but we are almost out.

Thinking about getting extra dish washing gloves to use but they are cumbersome to be all-purpose.

 

[fionasmom]

I was able to order gloves on Amazon a couple of weeks ago without any problem, so you might check there. Given how unpredictable things are though, I think that your next best bet are the dish washing gloves. I agree that they are cumbersome and I don't like to use them, but you might have to make an exception. Check first though because I saw much more of a run on masks than gloves. Even here where we have to wear masks in a public place, I am not seeing that many gloves.

 

[Jcatbird]

Have you considered washing your gloves while still on your hands? I do that so I can re use the ones I have to use around the house. The other thing I use is rubberized gardening gloves. I found those are still around in some gardening centers. They are a better fit that kitchen gloves.
I did catch some gloves at a small mom and pop type pharmacy. Not a chain store. I had to ask for them as they had them behind the counter to prevent hoarding. No masks available here though. Most people here are using home made masks. Reportedly not as efficient as N95 but they afford some protection.

 

[jcat]

In a pinch, our shelter uses "rubber" dishwashing gloves and washes them, or even small plastic bags secured at the wrists with rubber bands. Deliveries of nitrile gloves are starting to come in again, though.

 

[moxiewild]

I mean, you can just wash your hands, can’t you?

I’m a bit of a germaphobe, so i usually use gloves and masks for EVERYTHING, including basic litter box duty (for personal cats, fosters, and Ferals). And definitely for cleaning messes or cleaning boxes, etc, as well as for subqs and other injectables.

But we’ve been conserving the last of our glove stash (donated everything else) for several months now in case of emergency wound care, and also for certain high vector wildlife I have to bring home for work.

We’ve been dealing with giardia and many other parasites with our fosters lately (new one this week is tapeworm, the only thing we HAVEN’T treated for, of course!), and it has been killing me not to use gloves!

But we will not buy more because gloves are also part of the PPE supply that is stressed right now (at least in the states). Until that changes, and the PPE supply is more adequate for healthcare workers and other relevant industries, I’ll just have to deal with being grossed out, obsessively hand washing, and dried out hands!

We’ve had to conserve gloves where I work too. We employ frequent, thorough hand washing over donning and doffing gloves all day as usual.

In instances where we are dealing with high rabies vector species, we’re stretching our supply in ways indicated above. Washing and disinfecting disposable gloves, and doing the same with kitchen/dishwashing gloves.

Both at home and at work, if it’s something particularly gross but that glove use isn’t justified for during these conservation times, I just use big, excessive gobs of paper towels

It’s wasteful, but temporary. And I’d rather waste paper towels than PPE right now!