Don't Kiss That Chick!

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) warns that while baby chicks are cute, they can also be a source of Salmonella infection, especially for children. Since 1990, more than 35 outbreaks of Salmonella have been associated with live poultry. "It is important to know that infections from live poultry can occur at any time of the year, not just during the spring" said Dr. Casey Barton Behravesh, a veterinary epidemiologist at CDC. 

A chick or duckling may look perfectly normal and clean still carry Salmonella germs in their droppings and on their bodies (feathers, feet, and beaks) and make people sick with diarrhea, vomiting, fever, and/or abdominal cramps. Sometimes, people can become so sick from a Salmonella infection that they have to go to the hospital. Young children, elderly persons, and those with weakened immune systems are more likely than others to develop severe illness. When this occurs, Salmonella may spread from the intestines to the bloodstream and then to other body sites and can cause death unless the person is treated promptly with antibiotics.

Bottom Line

What should you do?

• Wash hands thoroughly with soap and water right after touching live baby poultry or anything in the area where they live and roam. Use hand sanitizer if soap and water are not readily available. Adults should supervise hand washing for young children.
• Don’t let children younger than 5 years of age handle or touch chicks, ducklings, or other live poultry. Don't give live baby poultry as gifts to young children.
• Don't snuggle or kiss the birds, or let them touch your mouth.
• Keep live poultry outside and away from human food.  Don’t eat or drink in an area where the birds live or roam.
• Don’t clean any poultry equipment, such as cages, inside the house.

Easter Sunday

A Blessed and Joyous Easter to All!

Easter!

A Blessed and Joyous Easter to All!

Easter Weekend

Everyone Christian knows about Easter Sunday and most people have heard of Good Friday (the day commemorating Jesus's death). But what is the Saturday in between called?

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Today is called Holy Saturday. In Roman Catholic Churches, the altar is completely bare while the Church is in a state of mourning. The administration of the sacraments is severely limited and given between Good Friday and Easter only to dying persons for their salvation.

Safe Easter Eggs

“What is my loftiest ambition? I've always wanted to throw an egg at an electric fan.”-Oliver Herford

With Easter nearby, you may be dying, hiding and eating lots of eggs. Here is some egg handling advice from the Alaskan Food Safety Division.

• Keep fresh eggs refrigerated until it's time to cook them. Warm eggs are a breeding ground for harmful bacteria just like meat, poultry, fish, and milk.
• The American Egg Board (AEB) recommends this method for boiling the perfect Easter egg: Place eggs in single layer in saucepan. Add enough tap water to come at least 1 inch above eggs. A tablespoon of vinegar can be added to allow better dye coverage after cooking. Cover pan and quickly bring just to boiling. Turn off heat. If necessary, remove pan from burner to prevent further boiling. Let eggs stand, covered, in the hot water for 15 minutes. Immediately run cold water over eggs or place them in ice water until completely cooled.
• Refrigerate all hard cooked eggs.Whatever the style of preparation, eggs should always be cooked well. The Food and Drug Administration recommends cooking eggs until both the yolk and the white are firm, not runny. This way any Salmonella or other harmful bacteria that may be in the eggs will be destroyed.
• Do not handle eggs excessively, and wash your hands thoroughly when you do handle them, whether in cooking, cooling, dyeing or hiding. The shell of an egg is very porous and will permit bacteria to penetrate.
• Hard cooked eggs actually have a shorter shelf life than raw eggs. Most commercial egg producers lightly coat their eggs with a thin spray coating of mineral oil to close the pores against contamination. Cooking the egg in the shell, however, removes that barrier so that your hard cooked eggs are again prone to outside contamination. Hard cooked eggs may also have small cracks allowing bacteria to enter.
• When hiding Easter eggs, avoid areas where the eggs might come into contact with pets, wild animals, birds, reptiles, insects or lawn chemicals.

Bottom Line
Visit the these websites for more information on eggs!
American Egg Board
USDA Egg Safety
FDA Egg Safety