salmonella question

[dftkarin]

I have 4 hens that I got as day old chicks (from Ideal) and they are healthy, living where no chickens have ever lived before and I assumed they would be salmonella-free. A friend just told me that since eggs and poop come from the same spot, and there is always salmonella present in poop, my eggs still have salmonella and I need to wash my hands after touching the shells and still be sure to cook them completely. Is this true?

 

[JennsPeeps]

It's aways good practce to wash your hands carefully after handling any animal.

It's impossible to know if they are samonella carriers without being tested. If you wanted to be certain, have them tested and then keep a closed flock (don't introduce new animals to it) to prevent them from becoming carriers.

 

[greyfields]

Salmonella is everywhere. Even if you kept a closed flock, your birds (and other livestock) would get it from the environment. Salmonella even lives in our own digestive tracts.

Sanitation, proper storage and proper cooking of food is your only defense really. Fortunately, it (like most bacterias) are only present on the exterior of your eggs or meat. So it generally is destroyed with the outter layers during cooking, even if you undercook the core a bit.