???is it possible to get sick from digging?

[craigc90]

I have a chance to dig a privy from an 1800's doctors office. Do you think theres a chance of catching anything.Just wondered if anyone ever thought about this??

 

[BARQS19]

I've always wondered that myself, every now and then you dig up old bottles that are still full of stuff, I've got one that is sealed pretty tight with something pink inside and one medicine bottle called Rose Water? still sealed. Might be perfume, dunno.
Robert
barqs19

 

[glopf43]

You are much more likely to get sick from going into a doctors office from 2005 [X(]! The contents of a privy that has been burried that long is nothing more than dirt by now. Oh, and likely some nice bottles [8D]! As for the left~overs in the bottles, such as those mentioned, there is the chance of somthing toxic []. I dug up a 90 year old bottle of Scott's Emulsion with the cap in place and some product left inside; cod liver oil, lemon juice and soda I believe. Now that was an interesting smell [:'(]!
I take NO responsibility for any injury or death due to the advice and opinion stated in this forum by myself or other's; And certainly not on a rainy Wednesday[sm=rolleyes.gif]!!!!

 

[Bottleman]

I have never herd of anyone getting sick from digging privy’s but there is a first for everything. I would assume the early it is the less you have to worry. I have dug a few Scott's Emulsion’s with that orange/brown stuff in them and you are right, that in one funky smell!!! That stuff will not come off of your bottle brushes either. Its like the stuff in the cobalt blue Vicks bottles. It just wont come off and does not dissolve in water.

~~Tom

 

[yabrokitdummy]

Hmmm....I don't know anything about that, but do be careful about the environment in which you dig. We have natural springs on our land, and a lot of marshy ground. There is something called "leptospirosis" that you need to be aware of. It's a nasty illness you can get from mud or water that wild animals urinate in. I have been digging a pond, and thought of it after the muddy water splashed in my mouth. I read up on the disease, and now I'm hoping this rash is just poison ivy....[]

 

[glopf43]

There is also mold spores, I have gotten some nasal/eye irritation from this []. Ticks; look out for Lymes desease [&:]. Poison: ivy, oak, sumak, ect []. Mosquitos; malaria, hepatitis [:'(]. Snakes. Skunks. Bears. Cougars. Fire ants []. Well, didn't we pick a great passtime/hobby [sm=lol.gif]! Oh, you might also get some nice bottles...

 

[RJ_Digs_Deep]

craigc90,

BEWARE ...

You certainly can "catch something" from digging that 1800's doctors privy ...

I caught it the first time I ever dug around an old 1800 celar hole, and still have it today... worse than ever.

symptoms:

cant sleep, toss and turn dreaming of buried old bottles.(a cobalt blob top soda keeps coming up in them???)

all I want to talk about is digging (and bottles).

my hands are allways dirty and all cut up. (I have gone through 5 pairs of leather work gloves in one month)

I used to love my job ... now it gets in my way of digging.

Yea, I am sick, and love it ... Bottle fever its called ... bad case ... uncureable I think.

If you already have it, that Old Docs Out House stands to make it worse ... good luck and post the finds ... RJ

 

[craigc90]

I already have it . This is my first privey but I have dug lots of surface dumps and foundations. I definately have the bug.Cant think about anything else but bottles and jars. I am going to dig it. I hope I find some good stuff. I will post some pictures

 

[yabrokitdummy]

I'll tell you what I've got (besides this weird rash that keeps growing...), is HEARTBREAK! My Dad brought home this big ol' acid bottle from the scrapyard where he works when I was a young teen (now I'm an old teen). Mom has been bugging him for years to take it back --she's got this weird thing about clutter []. I had it hidden in the back of a closet, and needed to make room. I decided to sneak it down to a dark corner of the basement last night. Just as I was about to set it down, it slipped...and you know the rest--hence my username [] I managed to get the lettering off the two halves of the bottom. Maybe I'll find out that it was worth a fortune so I can tell Mom that not all clutter is junk, huh?

 

[redbrass_ca]

I am told that Tetanus is good to have. You should get vaccinated once every 10 years. If you are close to sewage outfalls or septic fields it might be good to consider Twinrix ( Hepatitis immunisation against A and B. Statistics reveal that if present your odds of getting infected is 1 out of 3. Always carry a small first aid kit near you it might come in real handy.

My two cents

Thierry G. Papion
Nova Scotia Canada