Q&A Time: I have seen the following question posted several times on some chicken forums, and I wanted to address it here. Q: I saw one of my hens eat a mouse today. Is she going to be alright? The majority of the answers I saw posted on the forum looked something like this. 1. Sure! Chickens eat just about anything!. 2. Yep! Mine eat them all the time with no problems. 3. No worries! Chickens are omnivores and eat mice, snakes, lizards, and insects! Here is my answer. A: Do chickens eat mice? Sure! Is it good for them? Not necessarily. Mice can carry many diseases including Salmonella. If your chickens eat the mice or the mice droppings in and around their feed, they risk getting infected with Salmonella. Your chickens eat mice and dont have Salmonella? Prove it. When was the last time you had your chickens tested for Salmonella? Chickens that have Salmonella can appear happy, healthy, and show no symptoms all while shedding the Salmonella in their feces and inside the egg. Besides, testing for Salmonella is not very reliable because the chicken may not be shedding the Salmonella the day you test, but will resume shedding it the next day. That said, if you see one of your hens eat a mouse does it guarantee they now have Salmonella? Of course not, but to answer the question posted above with, Mine eat mice all the time with no problems is irresponsible. If you see one mouse, I can promise you there are more. A lot more! Mice reproduce fast, and before you know it you have an infestation. Many people laugh and smile when they see one of their chickens eat a mouse. I cringe, and immediately declare war on eliminating the mice ASAP! Again, do chickens eat mice? Sure! Is it good for them? Not necessarily. And if you ever see someone post, Chickens have a tendency to know whats safe to eat and not safe to eat I can assure you that person has never step foot into a poultry diagnostic lab. During necropsies, they have found nuts, bolts, nails, screws, staples, Styrofoam, and the list goes on and on. If you want to learn more about rodent control in the coop, here is a recent podcast I did with poultry scientist and professor, Dr. Brigid McCrea, Ph.D. blogtalkradio/backyardpoultry/2014/06/18/backyard-poultry-with-the-chicken-whisperer
Posted on: Mon, 26 Jan 2015 02:35:12 +0000
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