- Apr 19, 2009
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Anybody know if there are any dangers in cleaning out coops if your pregnant?? I know your not supposed to clean the cat litter box when preggers, didn't know if I should worry about chicken litter.
The cat litter issue is due to the potential presence of a virus in the cat's feces that causes toxoplasmosis. Cats are the main carrier/host but it is known to infect just about any warm-blooded animal. It can even be present on fruits and vegetables since they can easily come into contact with feces. Any fecal contamination can carry risk of toxoplasmosis infection, but there's really not good reason to worry needlessly. Chickens are not high risk carriers. Just wash your hands well, change your clothes and disinfect your boots when you're done. You're probably doing those things pregnant or not anyway though, so it probably won't be much change.
Remember chickens, until only recent history, were staples on most peoples' homesteads/farms and the caretaking of them fell pretty much entirely to the women, who were also charged with the job of reproducing as much as humanly possible throughout their childbearing years -- many hands makes light work! Okay, maybe not as much as humanly possible, but a lot!
The cat litter issue is due to the potential presence of a virus in the cat's feces that causes toxoplasmosis. Cats are the main carrier/host but it is known to infect just about any warm-blooded animal. It can even be present on fruits and vegetables since they can easily come into contact with feces. Any fecal contamination can carry risk of toxoplasmosis infection, but there's really not good reason to worry needlessly. Chickens are not high risk carriers. Just wash your hands well, change your clothes and disinfect your boots when you're done. You're probably doing those things pregnant or not anyway though, so it probably won't be much change.
Remember chickens, until only recent history, were staples on most peoples' homesteads/farms and the caretaking of them fell pretty much entirely to the women, who were also charged with the job of reproducing as much as humanly possible throughout their childbearing years -- many hands makes light work! Okay, maybe not as much as humanly possible, but a lot!
