The 1- and 2-year-old grandsons of Ray and Stephanie Bogucki have been in Children’s Hospital in Cincinnati, Kentucky, since Monday, suffering from what appears to be a shiga-toxin producing E. coli.

Ray Bogucki told The Ledger Independent on Thursday, "It is important people know this can happen. …

“The 1-year-old is showing signs of improvement. He has received two units of blood and seems to be getting better. The 2-year-old is on his third unit of blood and has had dialysis treatment. His blood pressure was high and he is being treated for that.”

The strain Bogucki’s grandchildren have is the type attributed to cattle, which could also be related to vegetables grown where cattle manure is used as fertilizer, he said.

“That was what confused us at first, because the 1-year-old is still eating baby food and not any meat,” Bogucki said. ”But the doctors said it can come from anywhere, even a petting zoo. They are farm kids, petting cattle and being around them.”