Are chickens safe pets to keep?

[gg706]

My neighbor was over tonight and I was playing with my chickens. He said I need to be careful handling the chickens as they can give us mites, lice, worms and eye worms????? I treat them like animals....I wash my hands after feeding, watering, cleaning, and handling them. Is this true? Even with being as sanitary as possible, can the chickens pass humans these things?

 

[cafarmgirl]

I guess it could be true if you kept them in filthy living quarters, never treated them for lice/worms, licked them a lot, wallowed around in their dirty pen with them and then maybe let them sleep in your bed with you!

But in all seriousness, if common sense, simple good hygiene and good animal husbandry are practiced, your chickens are no more a threat to you then any other pet or some unclean humans!

I keep my pens clean, my chickens have never had lice or mites, I deworm them on a regular schedule, I don't wear barn shoes in the house, and I simply wash my hands when I come in from the barn. And guess what? After doing that for many years I am certainly NOT infested with lice, mites nor worms!

Use common sense, ignore the fool's, and most of all, enjoy your chickens!

 

[California_chickie]

Yeah, sounds like your neighbor is a real "animal lover"
Sheesh.
Enjoy your chickens, and maybe just smile & wave next time you see your neighbor around.

 

[98cummins]

do you get mite,flees,and worms from your dog or cat? A lot of people have the wrong impression about chickens, everyone told me that they stink and are dirty. It is just not true my chickens don't stink. the coop is not stinky either do I clean it yes. If you keep any animal in a confined space and don't clean up after them it will stink and the animal will get sick sooner or latter.

 

[KrisH]

Nothing you couldn't get from his children, actually I would argue you would be MUCH more likely to catch something from his children!

and poultry lice and mice cannot live on humans anyway. They could poke you eye out.

Washing is always a good idea though.

RobertH

 

[Aeropennchick]

Totally agree. All animals, humans included (head lice and bed bugs!) can attract parasites. There is no greater health risk from handing a properly cared for chicken than any other properly cared for animal.

 

[JoePa]

You can get parasites from any animal if you are not careful - always wash your hands when you handle them or do any work around the coop - one thing I wouldn't so is let them in my house - now I know some people let them in their house - one thing with chickens - they sure poop a lot - that's the first thing I learned when I got my first chickens - you can get round worms and tape worms if they have them -

 

[dawg53]

You can get parasites from any animal if you are not careful - always wash your hands when you handle them or do any work around the coop - one thing I wouldn't so is let them in my house - now I know some people let them in their house - one thing with chickens - they sure poop a lot - that's the first thing I learned when I got my first chickens - you can get round worms and tape worms if they have them -

Personal hygiene after handling any animal is of importance. Feces contaminated food included. It may not only contain worm oocysts, but deadly bacteria as well.

 

[gg706]

Thank You for the info! I thought that was probably the case but to be honest IT GOT ME KINDA PARANOID!

I do keep the chicken tractor as clean as possile. I remove the straw and replace with fresh straw daily. I spray it out, to thoughly clean it, every weekend. The tractor is also moved every 3 days or so. I have soap sitting by the outside water faucet so I wash before I even go into the house then I wash my hands again inside. So I think I have been doing everything correctly. I think yall are right...some people just have a prejudice against chickens...they assume they are a nasty,dirty, filthy animal. I think if given the choice, chickens prefer being clean.

BTW I will TRY not to lick my chickens anymore.....

 

[math ace]

When folks think about chickens they think about the stinking commercial operations. Those places can be smelled MILES away - STINK, God Awful!

If they aren't thinking about commercial operatiosn, then they are thinking about the rural farmer 50 years ago that had the pig pen and its smell right next to the chicken pen. Vaccines, worming, coop clean outs etc were not part of the husbandary processs. I have a friend who has kept chickens his entire life. When I explained to him how my new coop set up was so much easier for coop clean outs.... well let's just say he doesn't believe in coop clean outs EVER! Times have changed and we (Educated BYC folks) are caring for our birds differently than was done in the past.

Chicken Lice do not use people as hosts.

Mites will use ANY ONE or ANY THING as a host. These pests are no different than fleas or ticks. They hop on feed, hop off, hop on feed, hop off. You shouldn't be afraid of mites any more than you are fleas or ticks. They are nasty pests that will multiply quickly. They bite and feed off of any thing that has blood. Inspect your birds and coops regularly. If you see them, do the necessary work to rid yourself of them....JUST like you would for your pet cat or dog.

Humans can get Worms by eating undercooked pork and other meat. The chickens catch them from eating raw insects. Worms are way more of an issue for you chickens than for you. If the chicken has worms bad enough, they will stop laying and could die. WORMING is something you do for dogs all the time. It is just part of the routine care of an animal.

Your neighbor sounds like he is just concerned for you, but doesn't have all the facts. Tell him you will be carefull and thank you

You might want to share with the neighbor all the hard work and preventative things that you do so that the chickens will be healthy and not stink so that he doesn't have to worry about lice or mites coming into his yard.... FLEAS and Ticks will still be a problem from the neighbor with the dog on the other side of him.... LOL....