Opinion
I don’t watch Fox, I value my grey matter.
Someone sent me Tucker’s Friday segment “asking” about the CDC warning of the risks of poultry and Salmonella.
The Fox News host invited Tiara Soleim, a “poultry enthusiast” and former contestant on “The Bachelor,” onto his show Friday night to discuss her love for cuddling chickens and her distaste for the CDC.
Seriously, Tucker, Shut the Cluck up!
Here is why the CDC has given the public a warning:
As of May 20, 2021, a total of 163 people infected with one of the outbreak strains have been reported from 43 states. Illnesses started on dates ranging from February 12, 2021, to April 25, 2021.
Sick people range in age from less than 1 to 87 years, with a median age of 24 years, and 58% are female. Of 109 people with information available, 34 (31%) have been hospitalized. No deaths have been reported.
The true number of sick people in an outbreak is likely much higher than the number reported, and the outbreak may not be limited to the states with known illnesses. This is because many people recover without medical care and are not tested for Salmonella. In addition, recent illnesses may not yet be reported as it usually takes 2 to 4 weeks to determine if a sick person is part of an outbreak.
State and local public health officials are interviewing people about the animals they came into contact with in the week before they got sick. Of the 92 people interviewed, 81 (88%) reported contact with backyard poultry before getting sick.
Public health investigators are using the PulseNet system to identify illnesses that may be part of this outbreak. CDC PulseNet manages a national database of DNA fingerprints of bacteria that cause gastrointestinal illnesses. DNA fingerprinting is performed on bacteria using a method called whole genome sequencing (WGS). WGS showed that bacteria from sick people’s samples are closely related genetically. This means that people in this outbreak likely got sick from the same type of animal.
On April 15, public health officials in Ohio collected samples from a sick person’s ducklings for testing. WGS showed that the bacteria, Salmonella serotype Hadar, in duckling poop are closely related to bacteria from sick people. This means that people likely got sick from contact with backyard poultry.
Not enough?
Also, in 2020 over 1,700 people were sickened – https://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/backyardpoultry-05-20/index.html.
In 2019 over 1,100 people were sickened – https://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/backyardpoultry-05-19/index.html.
In 2018, over 340 people were sickened – https://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/backyard-flocks-06-18/index.html.
In 2017 over 1100 people were sickened – https://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/live-poultry-06-17/index.html.
Ya, get the point. I have had backyard chickens for over 10 years. I may not follow all the advice below, but I do most of it.
I have never once felt like Tucker’s precious “Freedumb” has been threatened.
So, what can a reasonable person do after you stop watching Tucker? Here is was the CDC recommends – common sense – not thwarting your liberties:
- Wash your hands
- Always wash your hands with soap and water immediately after touching backyard poultry, their eggs, or anything in the area where they live and roam.
- Use hand sanitizer if soap and water are not readily available. Consider having hand sanitizer at your coop.
- Be safe around backyard flocks
- Don’t kiss or snuggle backyard poultry, and don’t eat or drink around them. This can spread Salmonella germs to your mouth and make you sick.
- Keep your backyard flock and supplies you use to care for them (like feed containers and shoes you wear in the coop) outside of the house. You should also clean the supplies outside the house.
- Supervise kids around flocks
- Always supervise children around backyard poultry and make sure they wash their hands properly afterward.
- Don’t let children younger than 5 years touch chicks, ducklings, or other backyard poultry. Young children are more likely to get sick from germs like Salmonella.
- Handle eggs safely
- Collect eggs often. Eggs that sit in the nest can become dirty or break.
- Throw away cracked eggs. Germs on the shell can more easily enter the egg though a cracked shell.
- Rub off dirt on eggs with fine sandpaper, a brush, or a cloth. Don’t wash them because colder water can pull germs into the egg.
- Refrigerate eggs to keep them fresh and slow the growth of germs.
- Cook eggs until both the yolk and white are firm, and cook egg dishes to an internal temperature of 160°F to kill all germs.
- I would add one, more – Turn Tucker Off!