Hatching a plan to avoid backyard chicken related illnesses

Backyard chicken farming is a trendy thing to do but there is a sinister side to the hobby that is coming to light: infection and disease in humans.

Most recently in the United States, illness from poultry related diseases is on the rise. The Centre for Disease Control says more than 1,100 people have contracted salmonella poisoning from poultry in the US, since January. Almost 250 people were hospitalized, and one person died. The toll was four times higher than in 2015.

In northeastern Ontario, Mattawa is the only municipality to allow backyard chickens, although many people in rural parts of the north have birds in their backyards.

"As with any pets, chickens in particular can carry bacteria," Holly Browne an environmental health manager at the Sudbury and District Health Unit said.

"Usually we associate it with a food poisoning, but when they're alive, they're still carrying salmonella, campylobacter and E.coli. This is shed through their feces."

How humans can get sick

Browne says humans can contract that bacteria by touching the chickens.

"The feathers can become contaminated with the fecal matter and when you're touching the bird, you're getting some of that onto your hands," she said.

"If you don't wash your hands and you touch your mouth, eat [or] touch food before washing your hands, there's a possibility of consuming the fecal matter which contains the bacteria."

Browne says you also need to be cautious with eggs purchased from people with backyard chickens.

"The eggs are contaminated with feces as well. So if you're handling the eggs, you want to make sure that you wash your hands afterwards," she said.

"With the eggs themselves, you want to make sure you cook them thoroughly. They are an uninspected egg and when you have a dirty shell and you crack the egg, the dirt from the egg shell can get into the egg."

Avoiding illness

If you do have chickens on your property, Browne says proper hand washing can be the trick to avoid illness.

She also recommends wearing gloves, a mask and certain clothing and shoes when cleaning the chicken coop.

"Make sure you have a pair of shoes that are dedicated for cleaning those cages," she said.

"Leave those shoes outside. You don't want to track their feces and the bacteria through the house."