Hundreds of people across the United States have become sick with salmonella, and the cause is likely contact with backyard chickens.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as of July 28, 938 people in 48 states are infected with salmonella.
Thirty-three percent of those people have been hospitalized, and one death was reported in Oklahoma. 28% of those who got sick are children under the age of five.
In interviews with 409 sick people, 74% reported coming into contact with chicks or ducklings purchased at farm stores, off websites, and in hatcheries.
The researchers tested chicken coops in Kentucky and Oregon and found three strains of salmonella outbreaks.
According to the CDC, poultry can carry salmonella bacteria, even if they look healthy and clean and show no signs of disease. People exposed to poultry should take the following precautions:
- Wash your hands right after touching the poultry, their eggs, or anything in the area where they live and roam.
- Do not kiss or cuddle poultry, and then touch your face or mouth.
- Do not allow backyard poultry to enter the home, especially in areas where food or drink is prepared, served, or stored.
- Reserve a pair of shoes to care for poultry and keep those shoes out of the house.
- Do not eat or drink where poultry live or roam.
- Stay outdoors when cleaning any equipment or materials used to raise or care for birds, such as cages and food or water containers.
- Always supervise children around birds and while washing their hands.
- Children under the age of 5 should not handle or touch chicks, ducklings, or other poultry, as young children are more likely to get sick.
People who handle eggs must do it safely:
- Collecting eggs often. Eggs that sit in the nest can get dirty or break.
- Throwing broken eggs. Germs in the shell can more easily enter the egg through a cracked shell.
- Clean the eggs with fine sandpaper, a brush or a cloth.
- Do not wash hot, fresh eggs because colder water can attract germs to the egg.
- Refrigerate eggs after collection to maintain freshness and slow germ growth.
- Cook the eggs until both the yolk and the white are firm. Egg dishes should be cooked to an internal temperature of 160 ° F or higher. Raw and undercooked eggs may contain salmonella bacteria that can make you sick.
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