Anyone ever gotten sick from keeping a brooder in the basement?

[Chicky Joy]

We kept our 26 chicks in the basement for 5-6 weeks. My FIL keeps going on and on about it. I know that you can get something from chickens (same as bats?) but I was wondering if anyone has ever gotten sick from doing what we did.

Last year we kept 6 chicks in the basement for a month but that was summer and the windows were open.

I'm one of those people that starts to worry if someone plants an idea in my head. This makes me quite cranky?

How many of you keep your brooders inside?

I kept the brooders cleaned out but still have that lovely dust in the basement. I've swiffered away most of it but need to do my complete cleaning yet.

Any thoughts?

 

[Poulets De Cajun]

Nope... and when I am hatching I regularly keep chicks in a brooder, in a spare bedroom until they are 6 weeks or older and are properly fitted to go outside. Never had a health problem yet....

 

[DonnaBelle]

I had 50 RIR chicks born March 11, 09 in a big box in my garage. When they outgrew the box, I made a huge open run around area in the garage. It was still really cold, and first of May I would open the door from my kitchen into the garage to keep it warm in there. Eventually the house started to smell a bit like chicken poop so I had to move them out to the chicken house after about 2 weeks. Now DH thought I was nuts, but I didn't lose any chicks, and he and I both didn't have any health problems.

I know you may not believe it, but I am quite a fussy housekeeper and keep things clean, so there!!

DonnaBelle

 

[Jonathanq1]

Never heard of someone getting sick either and I keep several in the basement as well. I do have the same dust issues though, but that is just natural with chickens I would suggest daily or at least every other day the cleaning of the area where you have them it's alot of work but you gotta luv it.

 

[bishopschickens]

Nope, and this is the first time in four years we havent had chicks raising in the house. We bought a chick shed....Okay I take that back, I have a shed full of chicks and quail in my basement!!

 

[LilRalphieRoosmama]

I always brood in the basement but I do have a problem with the dust so I use the HEPA filters in my furnace and replace them OFTEN.

 

[Buck Creek Chickens]

I've have them in the living room, we have wood heat its the only room with a stable temp, my GQF is there too. no one has ever gotten sick

 

[dappertophatter]

Sick and tired of it, but not physically sick.

You'll be fine, although Chicken Dust is why everybody gets brooded in the garage, and Positively No Winter Chicks!

 

[Damummis]

Interesting post.

I just finished a book called "Plagues, People and Places". It mentions that during the small pox outbreak way back when, the milk maids were immune due to the fact that they were in such close contact with cows. Cows = cow pox, humans= small pox. So maybe you are doing yourself good, maybe you won't get bird flu. At least that is the argument I used when DH asked how many brooders would be in the house.

 

[Ariel301]

You would not build up an immunity to bird flu unless your birds were carrying it and you got exposed to the virus that way. The reason milk maids would not get smallpox is that they got cowpox, and the antibodies their system created for the cowpox also worked against smallpox.

You can get some sicknesses from birds, but the birds would have to be sick or carriers in the first place. As long as your birds are healthy and everything is kept reasonably clean, it should be fine.