I'm not going to TOSS eggs during/after medicating my chickens.

[Jenski]

And . . . giddyup - - -

 

[BuffaloWings]

When I've had my chickens on antibiotics in the past I didn't toss the eggs either. I ate 'em. Never had any problems either.

 

[joebryant]

Quote:
Chronic Respiratory Disease

Thanks, I Googled that. It didn't sound like what my rooster had, but I'm not sure. I'll call my vet. I haven't seen any signs of anything in any of the other chickens though.

 

[FlashPointFarm]

I would think there would only be an issue if you planned on eating the eggs.

 

[Kansaseq]

Quote:
Eating eggs with traces of antibiotics in them won't make you sick. But being exposed to antibiotics when you don't need them can lead to 'bugs' being resistant to them. The overuse of antibiotics in our society has led to resistant diseases that no longer respond to the common antibiotics. We have to go to stronger and stronger antibiotics to get a response. MRSA is an example.

 

[7L Farm]

I wouldn't think that antibiotics would hurt you but I'm not a doctor.

 

[Zoomom]

The problem with eating/taking antibiotics in a low dose or for shorter than prescribed time is that you will kill off some of the bacteria, but not all of them. This leaves behind the stronger ones, which then multiply and all you have is strong bacteria living in your digestive tract. These can get out of balance, or out of control and the next time you get sick, will need a stronger antibiotic to kill these super-bugs than you would have if you hadn't selected for the strong bacteria.
It's like breeding for the tougher ones, just like in animals. If you save sickly kittens, then breed them, their offspring will most likely be sickly, too. If you breed strong, healthy kittens, their future offspring will be most likely strong and healthy.
This is why you are supposed to take antibiotics for 7-10 days, and not stop after you feel better in 3 days. It doesn't finish the job.

 

[BuffaloWings]

Quote:
Eating eggs with traces of antibiotics in them won't make you sick. But being exposed to antibiotics when you don't need them can lead to 'bugs' being resistant to them. The overuse of antibiotics in our society has led to resistant diseases that no longer respond to the common antibiotics. We have to go to stronger and stronger antibiotics to get a response. MRSA is an example.

I don't want to be accused of arguing here, so trust me I'm not. I just wonder how much of the antibiotics actually end up in the end product of eggs and then end up actually delivered to the person. Being in the medical field myself I get to see lots of MRSA. It would be an interesting study I think to see how much is contained in the egg vs. how much is metabolized in the liver and ends up in the poop & urine.

 

[sonew123]

Quote:
Eating eggs with traces of antibiotics in them won't make you sick. But being exposed to antibiotics when you don't need them can lead to 'bugs' being resistant to them. The overuse of antibiotics in our society has led to resistant diseases that no longer respond to the common antibiotics. We have to go to stronger and stronger antibiotics to get a response. MRSA is an example.

I don't want to be accused of arguing here, so trust me I'm not. I just wonder how much of the antibiotics actually end up in the end product of eggs and then end up actually delivered to the person. Being in the medical field myself I get to see lots of MRSA. It would be an interesting study I think to see how much is contained in the egg vs. how much is metabolized in the liver and ends up in the poop & urine.

Now, I eat all my eggs after meds-I dont sell them though-not for two weeks because Heaven forbid a customer is allergic to anitbiotics! That's my only concern...

 

[silkiechicken]

Antibiotic resistance thing is usually the concern behind tossing eggs, but if you incubate, there is a risk that depending on the antibiotic, it can lead to reduced hatches/deformities. Many antibiotics and drugs used to kill fast growing organisms like bacteria or worms interrupt cell cycle processes. In the big picture, these "small" disturbances in cell cycling don't really affect the larger organism as they are living on a longer time scale. However, in a rapidly dividing embryo, which essentially has cells that divide as quickly as bacteria in some cases, this is where issues can arise. Generally it won't kill all development though, as the cell cycle check machinery of the larger organism is much more advanced than in bacteria. In other words, mistakes caused by the drug which result in dead bacteria, can often be corrected by the inherent cell cycle machinery found in eukaryotic cells.


How long and how well the drug passes depends on the drug and how it is metabolized too, so I bet they often just say "toss for x time" becuase they don't know and just pick a number.