February 23, 2006

Austria registers first EU bird flu case in chickens

Austrian authorities have found the bird flu virus in two chickens and three ducks in an animal sanctuary, the regional agriculture ministry said on Wednesday.

The birds are the first cases of domestic poultry carrying the H5N1 virus in the EU. All other cases so far have been found in wild birds.

The birds had been kept in the same cage as a swan brought to the sanctuary from the area previously hit by the virus, against regulations imposed after the first occurrence of the virus in Austria, a health ministry spokeswoman said.

The swan had died in the animal sanctuary last week, prompting the slaughter and testing of all 30 birds that had been kept in the sanctuary.