Petting

[hedz82]

The disease thing is just as true for dogs and cats. Dogs eat any faeces and rotten meat they can get their teeth into, and they lick their bums. and how many people have their dogs on their couch or bed, and have them lick their faces. I hold a BSc in Microbiology and I am currently doing postgraduate study in a virology lab at the university, so I do know what I am talking about. It's all about how clean you keep your pets. Deworm them and feed them well, and don't let them come into contact with strange birds, like at shows. I can tell you will all conviction that eating the chicken you get at the supermarket or restaurants is a thousand times more dangerous than cuddling or kissing your pets, and having them poo in your bed occasionally. Because it is the conditions in industrial farming that breed pathogens, and they do end up in your kitchen. Studies have found that people's kitchens harbor way more dangerous germs than their toilets. I only eat venison, by the way, because that is the only safe and cruelty-free meat out there. Your food is where you introduce dangerous pathogens into your house, not with your pets. Obviously you want to not change your pets all the time, and not get them from shows, and quarantine them and vaccinate them after you buy them. When people used to live with their lifestock they had WAY less allergies and better immune systems than they have now, and the experiences and life lessons children will gain from interacting and living closely with pets far outweigh any risks. And as I said, take it from someone who studies infectious disease..and sleeps in bed with an orpington bantam when her husband is away. smaller chickens also poop less, and my eleanore always keeps it in at night mostly, too. she just makes a little dry pebble sometimes.
Chickens make wonderful pets, especially for people who, like me, are allergic to furry animals. If you worry about your children's safety, stop eating meat.

 

[hedz82]

...oh, and only buy free-range eggs. battery eggs are just as dangerous.

 

[PrimroseMom1]

If you go all the way back to some of the original books on raising chickens they always warn about not having chickens in the house, especially around children.  Chickens are animals that carry many diseases that are unseen by the human eye that can cause severe reactions in some people.  Salmonella is the first to come to mind and maybe the worst of them all. 

I would never bring my farm animals in the house and never ever for what ever reason let them on the bed where my children sleep.  Many of you treat them like pets but they are not pets they are farm animals that we use to get food from both for the eggs and their meat.   We cook those eggs and that meat to make sure all the diseases and parasites are killed.  I suggest you read some more about raising chickens and if you don't believe what I say find and ask an expert or you might just want to check with you favorite vet to begin with.

The next time that chicken is on your childs bed think about what they tell you when you cut up a chicken for supper and how you never use the same knife to cut up your salad without a thorough cleaning and disinfection!

I really enjoy my chicken and bunny pets and we go often into the chicken yard to play. We use our "chicken yard" shoes that we keep at the entrance to the chicken yard and leave there when we are done and wash our hands with soap and water when we are done. But that's it. Other than that, anything goes unless we get poop on our clothes which we would then change. I am no expert, but salmonella in raw chicken meat is different from holding a feathered bird, don't you think. I do believe to be careful with poop on you which is on their feet. But I admit we don't change clothes unless a true poop event occurred.

 

[KlassAct]

I've got 20 hens - 4 yrs to 9 months. About half of them like to be held or petted. Several will brush up against my legs until I pick them up, a few actually fly up onto my arm or shoulder if I'm too slow about it. (I have to watch if I have short sleeves on - those claws seem like talons sometimes.) Some hens like to be rubbed on their head and neck, some under their wings - most of mine like to rubbed on their back near the base of the tail. They usually move around and show me where they want to be petted or scratched.

Liking to be held doesn't seem to be breed specific (barred rocks, orpingtons, reds, and easter eggers). All of mine were originally 4H hens and were handled quite a bit when they were chicks.

 

[Jessica Lynn]

If you go all the way back to some of the original books on raising chickens they always warn about not having chickens in the house, especially around children. Chickens are animals that carry many diseases that are unseen by the human eye that can cause severe reactions in some people. Salmonella is the first to come to mind and maybe the worst of them all.

I would never bring my farm animals in the house and never ever for what ever reason let them on the bed where my children sleep. Many of you treat them like pets but they are not pets they are farm animals that we use to get food from both for the eggs and their meat. We cook those eggs and that meat to make sure all the diseases and parasites are killed. I suggest you read some more about raising chickens and if you don't believe what I say find and ask an expert or you might just want to check with you favorite vet to begin with.

The next time that chicken is on your childs bed think about what they tell you when you cut up a chicken for supper and how you never use the same knife to cut up your salad without a thorough cleaning and disinfection!

We aren't paranoid about our girls picking up something from the chickens. The girls play outside in the dirt and it's a total challenge to make sure everyone has washed their hands before dinner! Our chickens are healthy and so are my girls. In the past couple of years they have only caught colds from other kids! They have been out playing in the cow pasture, playing with dogs and cats and even turtles and no illnesses from any of that!
My husband doesn't even bother to cook eggs in the morning. He scrambles them into orange juice and has a drink!

 

[Jessica Lynn]

The disease thing is just as true for dogs and cats. Dogs eat any faeces and rotten meat they can get their teeth into, and they lick their bums. and how many people have their dogs on their couch or bed, and have them lick their faces. I hold a BSc in Microbiology and I am currently doing postgraduate study in a virology lab at the university, so I do know what I am talking about. It's all about how clean you keep your pets. Deworm them and feed them well, and don't let them come into contact with strange birds, like at shows. I can tell you will all conviction that eating the chicken you get at the supermarket or restaurants is a thousand times more dangerous than cuddling or kissing your pets, and having them poo in your bed occasionally. Because it is the conditions in industrial farming that breed pathogens, and they do end up in your kitchen. Studies have found that people's kitchens harbor way more dangerous germs than their toilets. I only eat venison, by the way, because that is the only safe and cruelty-free meat out there. Your food is where you introduce dangerous pathogens into your house, not with your pets. Obviously you want to not change your pets all the time, and not get them from shows, and quarantine them and vaccinate them after you buy them. When people used to live with their lifestock they had WAY less allergies and better immune systems than they have now, and the experiences and life lessons children will gain from interacting and living closely with pets far outweigh any risks. And as I said, take it from someone who studies infectious disease..and sleeps in bed with an orpington bantam when her husband is away. smaller chickens also poop less, and my eleanore always keeps it in at night mostly, too. she just makes a little dry pebble sometimes.
Chickens make wonderful pets, especially for people who, like me, are allergic to furry animals. If you worry about your children's safety, stop eating meat.

Thank you for posting this. It's how we feel too. My husband is an old farm boy. He grew up around cows, pigs, chickens and goats and said it was very rare for any of his brothers or sisters to get sick! When my girls have gotten sick it's been from bugs they caught from other children!

 

[Sharon Bee]

Has not anyone heard of the diseases in other countries where they live with goats and chickens?

I grew up on a farm also and played with young animals but we had rules and boundaries when it came to bringing them in the house.

I would not let my kids bring chickens in the house no matter what. They are too dirty and they want to be outside.

 

[LoneOak]

Quote: I totally agree with you Sharon Bee!

I handle my birds outside, have barn yard shoes and wash well first thing when I come in. No Way would I ever bring my Chickens in the house!

 

[Jessica Lynn]

Has not anyone heard of the diseases in other countries where they live with goats and chickens?

So you are comparing my children, who have access to medical care and proper nutrition and my animals, who get the best feed I can afford as well as the best vet care, vaccinations, dewormings to a third world country!

I find that to be extremely offensive!

 

[Sharon Bee]

So you are comparing my children, who have access to medical care and proper nutrition and my animals, who get the best feed I can afford as well as the best vet care, vaccinations, dewormings to a third world country!

I find that to be extremely offensive!

Oh please. That's not what I'm saying at all.