I was at work this afternoon and was, as usual, talking about my lovely chickens. We got to talking about the fact that we have our brooder inside. The Respiratory Therapist says that having them inside is putting my 11 month old at a greater risk for respiratory issues and tuberculosis. I cannot seem to find anything online about this. Has anyone else heard anything about this? I don't want to put her health at risk to raise some chickens. Thanks!
Maybe she was talking about the dust that chickens stir up. I have my brooder in the garage - and my car is covered with a thin film of dust within a day or two of washing it. Amazing the amount of dust they create!
I kept one bantam pullet chick inside after she got attacked by a dog. My daughter would sit with her on the couch and the little hen would preen and you would be amazed at the pile of dander such a little thing would leave behind after a grooming session. I don't know about the TB, but I might agree about the respiratory issues. Even small chicks starts "dust bathing" in whatever they are bedded on at a young age which can make a lot of dust. It is certainly OK to keep little peepers in the house for a few days, but once they start to feather and move about they really do create quite a mess. If you have just 2 or 3, I could see being able to keep them indoors for maybe a month, but more than that I would try to move them to the garage if possible.
I've heard of folks getting avian tb from pet birds, but not chickens. As long as you practice basic hygeine your baby will be fine, and probably have a better immune system for being exposed to more things.
Hogwash and ridiculoso. We protect our children from so much nowadays that they have become fragile, delicate flowers, inclined to break at the slightest disturbance and incapable of making a pb&j sandwich, let alone functioning as adults when they reach the usual age. Many studies have revealed that children who grow up in dusty, less-clean environments are at LOWER risk of asthma, allergies, and auto-immune illnesses because their systems are designed (evolved whatever) to handle a certain amount of dust and dirt, and without it, the body attacks itself. Your child's immune system needs exercise just like the rest of her does. I'm opting to raise rosy-cheeked farm kids over pale-skinned china dolls. But whatever. (By the way, my irritation is NOT directed at the OP here, but rather at the scare tactics employed by others to convince young parents to overprotect--and thereby in the long term, harm--their young children.)
Quote:LOL, I like this post! The ONLY reason I wouldn't keep chickens in the house is because Southerners (real ones anyway) don't do such things! That something they do ABOVE the Mason/Dixon Line. lol.
I don't know if it's true or not, but I have 2 suggestions for dealing with brooder dust: 1. Switch to compressed pine pellets - often used in horse stalls. They absorb the wet poops faster and a drier brooder = less smell. And they are much, much, much less dusty than shavings. 2. If you don't want to switch to pellets, I heard laying an indoor furnace filter over the top of the brooder will help to keep the dust down. I actually brood my chicks outdoors now. DH hates chicks in the house, so now I've got a cozy set-up in the barn for my chicks and I like it much better than having them in the house. It's so much cleaner!
