Backyard Chickens Linked to Salmonella Outbreak

A recent salmonella outbreak is being connected to the rising trend of keeping backyard chickens. Several cities around the area have recently passed ordinances allowing for chickens and poultry to be kept in backyard coops. Health Department Director Kim Mueller tells us the bacteria can be spread “without washing your hands properly and handling the poultry that could potentially have that salmonella, or even touching the cages or equipment where the poultry live.”

She says the bacteria can spread through food, but in this case “it’s more so the handling. So chickens, ducks, other  poultry can have bacteria called salmonella –
and that salmonella is a bacteria that can get people sick. It causes vomiting,
diarrhea, fever, stomach aches. And poultry can spread salmonella in their
droppings or on their bodies – like feathers, feet, beaks.”

Washing your hands thoroughly between dealing with live animals and eating is always recommended.