Salmonella risk?

[Xtina]

I've always loved how my flock has a low salmonella risk, but this winter my ladies were exposed to salmonella when a rat made its home in the chicken run. I read that rats are major carriers of the disease and I think it's spread through their poop, so my chickens scratching around in the dirt where the rat was guaranteed to have pooped would definitely put them at risk, right? The rat problem has (most likely) been taken care of, so now I want to know whether it's safe to eat my cookie batter made with my chickens' eggs. Is there a way to test chickens for salmonella that won't cost me an arm and a leg? Cookie batter and undercooked yolks are two of my biggest reasons for loving life, so it's worth it to me to find out.

 

[silkiechicken]

Salmonella lives in the gut, so chances if it being in the egg of a healthy bird is slim. Everything probably has some levels of salmonella in them, just don't eat poop. It takes a few thousand if not more salmonella cells to make you sick, and you need the right strain to infect you too. Eat away! There is always a risk when eating food not heated to a temp to kill bacteria. Plus, rats have probably been around, you just didn't see them, and there is no way to know for sure if your rat had it.

 

[abqferreira]

I assume that my chickens do have salmonella and I cook all my eggs thoroughly. They could have picked it up as chicks- I believe a local hatchery had a problem with kids getting Salmonella a year or two ago from handling baby chicks. I work for the Dept of Health and interview people with various infectious diseases. I have to tell you, Salmonella does not sounds like an organism I would want to be sick with, and I definitely am not going to put my kids at risk either.