For years, I’ve heard people ask about chicken pox and mad cow disease. Let’s talk about the fowls first.

I can find no evidence that chickens cause the disease. In fact, chickens I have asked just stare at me quizzically (a normal expression for a chicken).

This common childhood disease often begins with a body rash that usually spreads to arms and legs. The spots then turn to blisters, and go away after a couple weeks. (I once developed a similar rash while dancing in poison ivy, but that’s another story.)

Do chickens get chicken pox? No, they get people pox! (Forget this paragraph. That was a terrible joke.)

But seriously – and I get serious talking about chickens – chickens can get fowl pox from mosquitoes, which makes their skin break out. However, fowl pox will rarely make a chicken break out of a cage, because chickens have the I.Q. of a spoon.

Because fowl pox can spread from chicken to chicken (like gossip about the rooster), chickens can get a vaccination to prevent it.

Mad cow disease is a fatal brain ailment that makes the cow’s brain cells die. The cow eventually dies, too.

So, to sum up: Mad cow disease- very bad. Fowl pox – uncomfortable for a chicken. Chicken pox – It can make your skin itch, and give you a rash.

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