Introducing non-vaccinated cockerels to vaccinated hens...

[Anonymous]

Hi,

I have 6 commercially bought hens that have been vaccinated and have recently been given 2 cockerels that have NOT been vaccinated at all. I'm not planning on breeding them just yet (maybe in the spring) but the cockerels are obviously fertilising the hens. I'm wondering if the eggs are still safe to eat if the cockerels havent been vaccinated (i.e. diseases that could be transfer to humans from the unvaccinated cockerels, Salmonella?).

Any advice would be greatly appreciated

 

[foxy]

I think by taking normal precautions you should be fine, by that I mean washing hands after handling birds, making sure that all meat products and eggs etc are cooked properly. You are just as likely to catch salmonella from gardening or pets as you are your own poultry. I don't vaccinate against salmonella, other diseases yes, however I don't consider salmonella to be a serious enough health risk. Commercial hatcheries take a different viewpoint, they usually have much higher stocking density, so any infections spread like wildfire. Losing stock due to illness would have a major economic impact on business, not to mention their reputation.
Just my opinion mind you! 17