Bird Flu Crisis.

[ChicKat]

If the vector is wild birds, does it require face-to-face contact to transmit avian flu from bird to bird, or can the virus travel on the bottoms of one's shoes or the hooves of a horse?

good question - maybe someone has the answer

I have to say that I am kind of freaking out. I live in southern Minnesota where the outbreak is devastating right now. I have a free range laying flock and pastured meat birds. I'm praying that lots of sunshine and a great immune system will keep my flock healthy.

Does your local Ag extension office have any tips or advice for you?

 

[Theda's Mom]

Hi all, I answered my own question. This is what the agricultural arm of the UN has to say about the transmission of avian flu:

"Transmission
From what we know today, the avian influenza virus can be transmitted through contact among and with poultry and their droppings, feathers, intestines and blood. The greatest risk of infection for humans appears to be through the handling and slaughtering of live infected poultry.

Spread
Unlike some diseases, avian influenza is not an air-borne disease. Most current evidence suggests that the virus spreads mainly through the movements of poultry, poultry products, people and the vehicles they use for transport."

The same source also confirms that the virus does not survive in hot and dry conditions, thus transmission rates drop off as droppings dry out and temperatures climb.

Inquiring minds can find more information here:

http://www.fao.org/avianflu/en/qanda.html#7

 

[ChicKat]

good info.

Remember too that H5N2 and H5N8 - what they are seeing along the fly ways of migratory birds DON'T affect / infect humans. Our concerns are for our flocks. Thanks Theda's Mom.

 

[cliffhanger801]

From what I read in the news it sounds like the chicken farms affected so far have already made painful efforts to wash the tires of trucks, soles of shoes, and maintain biosecurity measures to hopefully prevent the spread of the disease. Some farms report that they have tried these measures and still suffered an outbreak.

I want to know what a backyard chicken farmer (with 8 hens) can do to protect a flock from exposure. Any suggestions? I don't have trucks driving in my backyard and I don't go walking through others' chicken farms. What is the actual risk of my hens contracting the illness from a wild, and how can I bolster my biosecurity?

 

[Theda's Mom]

From what I can gather reading the news, the primary vector is wild birds. The infection zone (if I can call it that) follows along a major fly way, and so far, flu outbreaks have been confined to areas crossed by that flyway. Those of us outside that path probably don't have a lot to worry about. Still, it may be a good idea to limit the exposure of your flock to wild migratory flocks like ducks and geese. I am also under the impression that the virus is susceptible to heat and generally subsides during the summer.

 

[ChicKat]

From what I read in the news it sounds like the chicken farms affected so far have already made painful efforts to wash the tires of trucks, soles of shoes, and maintain biosecurity measures to hopefully prevent the spread of the disease. Some farms report that they have tried these measures and still suffered an outbreak.

I want to know what a backyard chicken farmer (with 8 hens) can do to protect a flock from exposure. Any suggestions? I don't have trucks driving in my backyard and I don't go walking through others' chicken farms. What is the actual risk of my hens contracting the illness from a wild, and how can I bolster my biosecurity?

Here is a link to information about biosecurity from the USDA website
http://healthybirds.aphis.usda.gov/

WE often are very lax -- with a 'it would never happen here' out look. You need to be careful of your flock - and to expect to practice biosecurity when you visit flocks of friends.

 

[Diannastarr]

In highly pathogenic avian influenza , the disease appears suddenly in a flock and many birds die either without premonitory signs or with minimal signs of depression, inappetence, ruffled feathers and fever. Other birds show weakness and a staggering gait. Hens may at first lay soft-shelled eggs, but soon stop laying. Sick birds often sit or stand in a semi-comatose state with their heads touching the ground. Combs and wattles are cyanotic and oedematous, and may have petechial or ecchymotic haemorrhages at their tips. Profuse watery diarrhoea is frequently present and birds are excessively thirsty. Respiration may be laboured. Haemorrhages may occur on unfeathered areas of skin. The mortality rate varies from 50 to 100%.
In broilers, the signs of disease are frequently less obvious with severe depression, inappetence, and a marked increase in mortality being the first abnormalities observed. Oedema of the face and neck and neurological signs such as torticollis and ataxia may also be seen. The disease in turkeys is similar to that seen in layers, but it lasts 2 or 3 days longer and is occasionally accompanied by swollen sinuses. In domestic ducks and geese the signs of depression, inappetence, and diarrhea are similar to those in layers, though frequently with swollen sinuses. Younger birds may exhibit neurological signs.

Government scientists theorize that when ducks and other migratory waterfowl from different flyways gather at their northern breeding grounds this summer, they could expose each other to the highly pathogenic H5N2 virus, then carry it back south this fall along several migration routes, perhaps including the Atlantic Flyway. That flyway includes several of the country's top poultry producing states including Georgia, the Carolinas, Virginia, Delaware and Maryland.

Bird Flu Outbreak Could Head Eastward With Fall Migration
http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory/bird-flu-outbreak-head-eastward-fall-migration-30346589

5.3 million Iowa laying hens to be destroyed in bird flu outbreak
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/money/agriculture/2015/04/20/avian-flu-chicken-eggs/26094811/

Where it stands: The avian flu outbreak and Minnesota turkeys
http://www.mprnews.org/story/2015/04/08/avian-flu-running-tally

about BIRD FLU , "A Korean research team has shown that kimchi may fight the bird flu. In an experiment with three groups of chickens infected with the bird flu virus, the recovery rate of the two groups that received a bacterial culture present in kimchi (11 of 13 recovered in both groups) far exceeded the group that did not receive the culture. All 13 chickens died in the latter group." i had read the chinese found that feeding chickens kimchi, { thats a kind of sauerkraut } can help to cure the bird flu...? so if that was the case , I would at least try that & WHAT EVER ELSE , before killing my flock...
Don't get kimchi that comes from China, it is supposed to have high levels of lead in it. Most of the kimchi in the states comes from Ca. or from Korea , those can be picked up at most Asian groceries or ordered off the web. Don't be put off by the smell, it will go away once you take it out of the jar and put it on a plate, it is just the air inside the jar that smells...it is fermented remember. Also it is a spicy, a side dish, don't go crazy. but keep it on hand its full of Lactobacillus plantarum - the biggest group of bacteria in fully fermented cabbage, Provides Vitamin C - Captain Cook prevented his crew from catching scurvy by taking barrels of sauerkraut with them

• Reduced incidence of diarrhea in daycare centres4
• Especially effective in reducing inflammation in inflammatory bowel; e.g., enterocolitis in rats, small bowel bacterial overgrowth in children, pouchitis4
• Reduced pain and constipation of irritable bowel syndrome4
• Reduced bloating, flatulence, and pain in irritable bowel syndrome5
• Positive effect on immunity in HIV+ children6
• Drastically reduces the phytic acid, polyphenols and trypsin inhibitor activity in grains and soy which significantly increases the digestibility of starch and protein7
• Contains the antioxidants glutathione and superoxide dismustase which can help fight off free radicals.
• Turns hard to digest lactose into easily to digest lactic acid.
• Helps generate omega-3 fatty acid and GTF chromium a trace mineral that help with digestion

so just in-case & any way i will use it for us all my birds & family, its very good for you, & full of lactic acid...!so yeah Captain Cook was right!

 

[enola]

If your flock is diagnosed with AI, all of the sauerkraut in the world will not save them. Birds that test positive are destroyed, you will have no control in the situation.

Practice the best BIOSECURITY you can. Make sure your flock is as healthy as possible. And pray. That is about all any of us can do.

 

[Diannastarr]

If your flock is diagnosed with AI, all of the sauerkraut in the world will not save them. Birds that test positive are destroyed, you will have no control in the situation.

Practice the best BIOSECURITY you can. Make sure your flock is as healthy as possible. And pray. That is about all any of us can do.

i agree its best to use BIO-SECURITY and feed your birds well...! i do that now , but im feeding kimchi starting tomorrow...lol... its a healthy food that can improve health , so why no use this type of food as good prevention , and this stuff is very good for all of us ..? its full of lactic acid & its a great probiotic & antioxidant glutathione . plus a vaccine will be available for the bird flu and from what i read last night other countries are using vaccines, & even china is involved in vaccinating but in this country the giant egg produces dont really care becasue they get reimbursed for losses from our government , and from birth to death none of their birds are out side, plus this good news the sun kills this virus,and summer is coming thank goodness & pray for lots of sun, here in AZ we got sun..! but as the old saying goes , an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, so im going for the kimch & feeding it to my girls every day..! avian flu, vaccinating poultry, bird flu www.thegoosesmother.com/id79.html

 

[ChicKat]

It probably cannot hurt anyone's flock to increase probiotics, and the good gut bacteria - if it is via kim chi - sauer kraut, packets of probiotics or fermented feed. And definitely any proactive action that we can take for our flocks may pay in the end. It may or may not protect our birds from H2N5 - but if you have access to increasing the flock's probiotics, why not?

As enola said - once there is absolute confirmation - then it is out of the flock owner's hands, sadly -- but there is such a thing as a false positive in these tests I understand. Toughest part- is they are thinking wild birds are the source of the spread by the geography - and it seems to be along migratory fly-ways.

Here is an article about how states are closing poultry shows this summer/year

http://www.thepoultrysite.com/bird-flu/bird-flu-news.php?country=us

quote from the article:

The last outbreak of bird flu in Pennsylvania was in 1983-84, when 17 million birds died as a result of the virus.
Other states to enact bans include West Virginia, North Dakota and Minnesota, which has already seen avian flu at 88 farms within its borders.
Ohio is taking a narrower approach. The state has banned bird entries from states affected by the H5N2 and H5N8 strains, but not a full ban.