Salmonella

[streetglide]

Growing up I used to use raw eggs in milk shakes.
A Carnation instant breakfast, two eggs, a scoop of ice cream and some milk.
I loved 'em, and it never killed me, but we always had fresh eggs...fresh milk for that matter.
Later we heard OH LORD NOOOOOOO, DON"T EAT RAW EGGS!!!!!! or unpastuerized milk.
Of course we drank out of the stream, we ate apples off the tree without washing them, we didn't know what shoes were for in the summer, crap there was lead paint on all the buildings...yet I survived. And no I'm really not all that old!!! ...46!

O.K....got a little off subject there! What I'm asking is Salmonella only a problem with poorly handled store bought eggs? Or can it also be present in my layed 25 minutes ago eggs as well?

The girls are just getting started and I'm getting 5-6 eggs / day. Eggbeaters is rediculously expensive...sure would be nice if I could use my own fresh egg whites!

 

[caspernc]

Would like to know also.

 

[streetglide]

I may have answered my own question..on the Home Page there is an add for Salmonella free eggs, pasteurized in the shell.
Wouldn't that be known as hard boiled? LOL!

 

[bigmike&nan]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pasteurized_eggs

 

[streetglide]

Ack! Thanks....I think....makes me feel like not eating eggs. Guess I'll have to stick to scrambled egg whites!

 

[Clay In Iowa]

Salmonella contamination often occures oprior to the egg being layed so it really won't matter if the egg is fresh or out of the fridge.

If your birds are healthy then you minimize the possibility of them having Salmonella to begin with. Practice good biosecurity and they probably will never be exposed.

I eat and feed raw eggs to my family all the time... mayo.. homemade ice cream.. eggs over easy.... Don't worry so much....Eat and enjoy

 

[bigmike&nan]

Quote:
Yeah sometimes reading those salmonella links will put a crimp in your egg eating. Over and over in chef school we were taught food safety. Now I'm in general agreement with Clay in Iowa except serving RAW eggs in food...
I don't buy mayo, I haven't bought mayo in 15 years... I make my own but I coddle the eggs in boiling water for 45 seconds - if done properly it cooks only a tiny portion of the white which sticks to the shell. That and I am very careful not to take food products with my homemade mayo to parties where the food will be subjected to hot sun for any period of time (picnics).

Where I DO agree with Clay in Iowa is that if you practice good coop and run cleaning practices you will have a healthy flock - our girls free range all day - they are some very spoiled happy campers. I feel the "risk" of disease from home produced eggs is way down - most commercial laying hens don't even get out to see the sun - risk of health issues with commercial eggs is due to the lack of exercise, closed in pens and general piss poor lifestyles those hens endure... I only buy store eggs when I have to. Now we have 20 hens and we're getting 9-12 eggs a day. We've got the ratio down just right. If I don't use them up in say 2 days I scramble them and feed them to the girls, who LOVE them...

Love your girls and they'll love you back, in spades.

 

[streetglide]

Thanks guys, I didn't know were the salmonella actually originated. My girls live the life of queens! The coop and run are cleaned weekly or in cold temps. monthly.

My Step Dad said his grandmother lived the last years of her life on raw eggs and fresh milk as she couldn't keep solid foods down...in complete disagreement with the Wiki article about definitely not feeding undercooked egg products to the elderly.

And something that none of my family can get over to this day...Moms grandmother used to keep mayo in the kitchen cupboard...no refrigeration!! We still wonder about that!

 

[fl_deb]

Okay, I admit that there is a chance that the lizard I saw one of my pullets eat last spring could have created this in this pullet. Does anyone know if there is anyway to eliminate these risks without taking their free=ranging away?

My girls live to free range!

 

[streetglide]

I never thought of that Deb. I know turtles carry it...never thought of lizards.

So IF they do, and IF ingesting the critters is a way for it to be transmitted you'd have to keep your chickens in the house! And even that wouldn't be a guarantee!

Mine have a nice wire enclosed run...I have way to many predators around here not to...but a lizard could easily get in there also. Luckily, we don't have lizards!