Okay to keep chickens while pregnant?

[Pug Momma]

Yes, I have totally gotten out of the cat poop scooping detail! I do the deep litter method in the hen house, so don't think cleaning out the coop is gonna be a concern and so far, all I have read speaks to what you awesome people have said - wash your hands, etc, etc, etc...
Good to know. I like hanging out with the girls on a sunny afternoon watching their fuzzy butts eat all my lawn's weed seeds...!
**Hey Daniel - I know about that too much sun thing! But you gave us a good laugh, so right on!**

 

[mountaintopchicken]

I am pregnant and have been keeping my chickens right along. I am very careful about handwashing. I asked my obstetricians about it, and they said they couldn't immediately think of a reason to be concerned, but by the puzzled look on their faces I could tell that they hadn't ever given chickens plus pregnancy much thought before.

I couldn't clean the coop or anything but all else was fine.

Why couldn't you clean the coop? I've cleaned two coops while pregnant - slowly and carefully so I wouldn't overexert, while wearing coveralls, gloves and a respirator to be extra careful. Is there something medically bad that can happen if you clean the coop?​

 

[EweSheep]

When I was pregnant with my DD all that time I had chickens, I had no problems and neither did my OB.

Enjoy and take all the washing in precautions and be sensible as well!

 

[cassie]

If it were bad to keep chickens while being pregnant, I wouldn't be here. Neither would most of the people of my generation. Back in the Dark Ages when I was born, just about everybody had chickens. And it was the housewife, pregnant or not, who cared for them.

 

[keesmom]

We had chickens during both my pregnancies. Not only did I lug out food and water for them I also cleaned the coop. I even crawled under a shed at 8 1/2 months to remove a couple of hens that had planned to sleep outside for the night. Both my kids were delivered just fine and now they love chickens!

I can't see why they'd be a problem, unless you had some sort of complication develop.

-Cindy in MA

 

[Pug Momma]

I mean when we really think about it, and this is what my husband just said, most people historically grew up on farms and had less than modern ideals of cleanliness, so it's mostly fine, otherwise we would never be here!
All the mom's should agree here, you get bombarded with SO MUCH stuff about what is bad for you. Don't touch this, don't touch that, watch out for that killer microwave - it gets somewhat ridiculous after a while!
Common sense and usually things work out! Plus, I work in Mental Health and everyone is always trying to link something mundane with childhood bipolar or something.
Information overload.
You have all made me feel much better about my babies!

 

[EweSheep]

 

[fowler_chick]

like many farm woman before us, it never fazed them, so why should it be any difrent?......in both my pregnancies on the farm i did all my chores, no "light duty" either,

 

[caj]

Just look at the Amish. The women spend a large part of their lives pregnant and they all have chickens.

 

[elmo]

Toxoplasmosis is the concern with cat litter boxes, very serious for a pregnant woman:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toxoplasmosis