I think my boyfriend just traumatized my chickens... and me

[RAsChickens]

OMG that's hilarious! If that happened I'd VIDEO it and taunt him with it because I'm an evil-ish girlfriend.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Well I guess it's better than having a boyfriend that gets up on a chair and screams like a baby. You know like Keep off of MY chair. Rats carry diseases don't they? Would a chicken eating one get the disease?

Most diseases are pretty specific to species. It's highly unlikely any bird will get a disease from a mammal. Anything is possible but they just don't transfer in most cases. A lot of diseases won't transfer from one type of bird to another either, chicken to duck for example, but this is more likely. Some do. A lot depends on the specific disease and how closely the species are related. How the diseases is transmitted also matters.

Parasites are a bit more complicated. Most are still highly selective to their host's species, but some parasites use different hosts at different stages of development. And some will transfer. But most won't.

Diva, you are missing a very important word in your statement about rats. Rats CAN carry diseases. It's certainly possible. If I have polio or measles and you are not vaccinated for them or somehow immune, I CAN give you polio or measles. If I don't have polio or measles I cannot transmit them to you.

What specific diseases, if any, does that specific rat carry? The vast majority of them won't have anything that will bother the chickens or you, though you are a more likely target. You are more closely related to a rat than a chicken is.

When I'm disposing of dead rats or mice I'm very alert to fleas. A lot of the diseases we should worry about being transmitted to people from mice or rats are transmitted by fleas. Bubonic plague will not affect chickens but it can you, though the vast majority of rats won't have bubonic plague to start with. Fleas rapidly evacuate a dying body as it cools off. I let a rat or mouse cool off before I get very close to it as a safety precaution. While it is highly likely the mouse or rat does not have anything that will affect me, I consider that a reasonable precaution.