Okay, I forgot about this thread, as it had slipped down...but I actually did some research to find out what this SAFE SAND stuff was all about. Here's what I found--the State of California (who we all know has gone litigation crazy) requires sand to be labeled as "carcinogenic" because---people who work in concrete plants, who breath it all day long, for many, many years, have gotten silicosis. Or people who cut concrete for a living. Now bear in mind the stuff that causes silicosis is very fine airborne dust, the kind that would be washed away in the first rain. I would be much more nervous about throwing DE around without a mask.
So unless your kid is playing in a sandbox, that is NEVER rained on, makes whirlwinds constantly for hours a day, for several years off his life, the chances of him getting silicosis is nil. But that hasn't stopped a few manufacturers that saw a marketing gimmick--buy our expensive sand or your kid will die!!! Thus the idea of Safe Sand was born.
Silicosis is caused by constant irritation, not by a chemical that would be blood born, thus nothing could possible get into the egg. Even if your chickens decided to go into concrete construction. And they seem to like making dust--kills the mice and lice, can't stop them.
