Did anyone catch Salmonella from their backyard flocks? Share your experience

[Astroboy]

Hello all, Nice to meet you here.

I am interested in starting my own backyard flock, but I am worried about Salmonella.

What are your experiences with Human Salmonellosis? How likely is it to catch salmonella from your flock?

Did you have any symptoms of diarrhea/ vomitting/ cramps? Did you report it to authority? What did you do with your flock?

Thank you for taking your time to answer my question. Have a wonderful day!!!

 

[Chickassan]

Nope, never, ever, ever. The salmonella stories are overblown hype designed to scare people. Use good sense and wash your hands and you'll be fine. A backyard flock is amazing don't get scared out of having one.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

Nope, never, ever, ever. The salmonella stories are overblown hype designed to scare people. Use good sense and wash your hands and you'll be fine. A backyard flock is amazing don't get scared out of having one.

I might add. Don't try to scare others from enjoying chickens either.
This just don't feel right for a new posters first question.
I will dance around the edges here but I have recently noticed a lot of activity from the chicken rights people attempting to vilify backyard chicken keepers.

 

[Astroboy]

Thank you for the replies.

Not a Chicken rights activist at all. Don't worry. Just curious because I personally had the experience of salmonella poisoning myself ( from food poisoning and not from flocks) and I just need more information from experienced backyard flock keepers to give me confidence in keeping backyard flocks myself.

Thank you again!! )

 

[Molpet]

do not wash anything chicken in the kitchen sink... I read an article that washing the feeder/waterer/hands in the human food prep area was the issue.. or not washing hands.. or sticking fingers in the mouth... That being said, we are more likely to get sick from commercial foods than our chickens.

 

[Mama Runner]

Welcome!!!! Ha ha THIS IS RIGHT UP MY ALLEY.
I work for the D.O.D
I have a P.H.D. in biology, chemical and Nuclear engineering. I have been working in my field for 26 years.

1) yes plain and simple you could. You are more likely to get it at a restaurant than from your flock!
2) WASH YOUR HANDS PRIOR TO TOUCHING OR TENDING TO YOUR FLOCK. YOU CAN GIVE IT TO THEM JUST AS EASY AS WE CAN GET IT FROM THEM.
3) KNOW where your flock comes from. Unfortunately there are dirty hatcheries.
4) Yes as we all know in the USA our news is not always truthful.
5) Wash your hands OUTSIDE! Just in case. We keep soap right by the hose. This way your not touching your door knob or faucet in the house. Then go in and wash your hands.
5) Don't try and scare others. Actually by having back yard poultry you are protecting your family from dangerous food that does have diseases. The more you handle your flock the better.

Education and research are the best tools. But plain old common sense goes really far.
The joy of raising a flock far out ways any risk.

 

[BantyChooks]

Nope... Never... Exercise basic sanitation and you'll be fine.
Do as I say, not as I do---I share food with my birds and bring them in the house.

 

[Mrs. Light Sussex]

I vaccinate my flock against salmonella, I'm not taking chances with my family or flock!

 

[User395221]

Salmonella is everywhere. It'll make you sick when you ingest a lot of it.
I've never (to my knowledge) had illness from salmonella from any source.
I think people need to understand how "bugs" work and act accordingly. For example, if you take a mayonnaise salad to a picnic and it's not refrigerated, you throw it all away if it doesn't get eaten. You don't bring it back home. Some foods harbour bugs more than others. You need to be careful about preparation and storage, and where you buy it from if you get it from a shop. Generally, I don't like to buy any mayonnaise-based pre-prepared salads from a shop. Ditto lettuce leaves. Get a whole lettuce and wash it at home.
Keep your hands out of your mouth. Wash them often and after handling animals/litter trays.
For me, the risk of salmonella from my chooks is purely theoretical. I'd be more worried about a green salad in a restaurant because I've no clue how much the food handlers know about hygiene. I still eat from food halls where the food is sitting out in bain maries. Even if I was unlucky to get poisoned, I'm in generally good health, it won't kill me.
(even if someone did get an attack of poisoning, it'd need to be thoroughly investigated before it could be attributed to chickens and not some other means of ingestion. There are lots of ways you could ingest it.)

 

[Astroboy]

Dear Mama runner:

Thank you for such an expert reply. A million thanks in advance if you don't mind answering some further questions:

2) WASH YOUR HANDS PRIOR TO TOUCHING OR TENDING TO YOUR FLOCK. YOU CAN GIVE IT TO THEM JUST AS EASY AS WE CAN GET IT FROM THEM.
-> What percentage of backyard flocks carry salmonella? or do they all carry the bug but just don't feel sick? I have been reading CDC research page but I wonder what your real life experience is like.

3) KNOW where your flock comes from. Unfortunately there are dirty hatcheries.
-> Where do you guys get ur flock from? how do you identify a reliable hatchery??

so Mama runner, u probably never had salmonella because of your precautions and careful handling, right? Did you ever have food poisoning ( probably fr. restaurants or bad food) with symptoms like salmonella and ever wonder if it was your flock?

Million thanks again. Have a wonderful weekend.