Children holding baby chicks

Wash your hands. Thats all.

Id like to think its more dangerous handling raw chicken from tyson than it is to pet a chicken in skmeones back yard

KDOGG331 said:

Personally, I think dogs are gross lol I love our dog but they go out and dig and eat and roll in dead things etc. And then try to lick you with that gross tongue. Cats groom themselves all the time. They also don't poop on counters? Lol but then again my cat is inside and has a little box that she uses and I try to clean it. I suppose an outdoor cat may be different though and poop anywhere. Inside though they use the litter box. Our girl has some issuez with peeing in the sink and shower but most cats use the box and she does always poop in it. I think the issue is we don't clean it enough

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I think she means they walk in the litter that they poop and pee on and then jump on the counter and leave feces particles on the counter or wherever else they touch. I'm all for cats though, as I have 3 and I'm all for dogs...I've got one of those too and we are very close to one of our neighbors, so we occasionally kidnap her dog and bring her inside to play with her inside the house , but they kidnap our Ruby (and one of our cats) too!

sophiaw00 said:

I think she means they walk in the litter that they poop and pee on and then jump on the counter and leave feces particles on the counter or wherever else they touch. I'm all for cats though, as I have 3 and I'm all for dogs...I've got one of those too and we are very close to one of our neighbors, so we occasionally kidnap her dog and bring her inside to play with her inside the house  , but they kidnap our Ruby (and one of our cats) too!

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Bingo, that's exactly what I meant, though I do sleep with a dog butt in my face most nights, all a matter of perception.

sophiaw00 said:

I think she means they walk in the litter that they poop and pee on and then jump on the counter and leave feces particles on the counter or wherever else they touch. I'm all for cats though, as I have 3 and I'm all for dogs...I've got one of those too and we are very close to one of our neighbors, so we occasionally kidnap her dog and bring her inside to play with her inside the house  , but they kidnap our Ruby (and one of our cats) too!

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oldhenlikesdogs said:

Bingo, that's exactly what I meant, though I do sleep with a dog butt in my face most nights, all a matter of perception.

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Ohhh that makes sense then haha I feel like they try to avoid stepping on it though but I'm sure they still touch it and now you're grossing me out lol I need to clean it more often cause then maybe you could get the stuff out before they touch it.

And awww i wish my dog had a dog to play with haha

I like cats because they at least try to keep clean whereas most dogs just don't care lol plus they actually eat the poop and dead things.

There have actually been studies done that proves that babies and toddlers in homes with pets have stronger immune systems. This is because pets will bring in dirt and what not on their feet, the children are exposed to it and build up immunity.

I've only been keeping chicks around 2 months but yes I have let my 2 and 4 yr olds pet and hold them. No ill effects so far, my toddlers have grown up with dogs inside and I do make them wash their hands all the time and get onto them if they try to stick their fingers in their mouth.

And the amount of people that get salmonella is far greater than cases reported. Several cases go unreported because the person only has mild diarrhea for a couple days and then recover. I do agree a pair of "coop" shoes is a good idea so its not tracked all over the yard/inside and hand sanitizer kept near the coop exit for use before going back inside to wash hands, door knobs are notorious for germs.

My daughter has gotten a cold twice in her 4 yrs, my 2 yr old son once. Worse thing I had to deal with was an infected bump that had to get lanced and in a small town(with only 1 walmart, 1 publix, 1 lowes, etc) there were 2 other kids with same issue at the pediatric center at the same time as us. Believe it or not the doctor recommended giving a "bleach" bath once or twice a week, not a big amount, only like 1/2 cup to a cup in a full bath tub. Now I do that once a week and haven't had any issues(even a cold) since.