The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday that 34 people in 13 states have been sickened by an antibiotic-resistant strain of Salmonella traced to contact with backyard poultry. [1] Of the cases, ten have required hospitalization; no deaths have been reported. The outbreak strain has been confirmed by whole-genome sequencing to match samples taken from chicks shipped through several mail-order hatcheries between January and April. [1]

The thirteen-state spread is what gives the warning its scale. Cases are clustered in Michigan, Missouri, Tennessee, Virginia, North Carolina, Texas, and seven additional states; the median age of those infected is 28, with several pediatric cases under five. [2] The strain carries reduced susceptibility to ciprofloxacin and ampicillin — antibiotics typically used to treat severe Salmonella infection in immunocompromised patients. The CDC is asking buyers of backyard chicks since January to monitor for diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps for up to a week after exposure. [1]

The mechanism is not new; the volume is. The CDC has tracked Salmonella outbreaks linked to backyard poultry in every year since 2017, with case counts averaging 600–1,000 annually nationwide. [3] What is new is the antibiotic resistance, the cross-state distribution pattern, and the demographic shift toward homestead-poultry buyers in suburban and exurban counties. The pandemic and the wellness-aesthetic homestead trend doubled mail-order hatchery sales between 2020 and 2024.

The federal advice is mechanical. Wash hands after handling chicks; do not let children under five handle birds; do not keep poultry in living spaces. The same advice the CDC has issued for nine years; the antibiotic-resistance line is the new sentence in this year's version.

-- NORA WHITFIELD, Chicago