October 14, 2020

Veterinarians urge UK poultry farmers to be ready for winter bird flu

Chief Veterinary Officers in the UK are urging poultry farmers to be prepared for the upcoming winter bird flu and reduce the risk of the disease among their birds, Gov.uk reported.

The advice comes as part of the UK's annual winter avian flu awareness campaign, especially as there are outbreaks of the highly pathogenic avian influenza in Russia and Kazakhstan.

There will be more migratory wild birds as winter approaches, putting domestic UK poultry at risk. The UK is currently free of avian flu.

Some biosecurity measures advised to poultry farmers include keeping the area where birds live clean and tidy, controlling pests and regularly cleansing and disinfecting any hard surfaces.

Farmers are also told to place birds' feed and water in fully enclosed areas that are protected from wild birds, and removing any spilled feed regularly. Fencing should be built around outdoor areas where birds are allowed, and their access to ponds or areas visited by wild waterfowl should be limited.

In addition, all people entering the farm should clean their footwear before and after visits. Farmers should also avoid keeping ducks and geese with other poultry species.

The four Chief Veterinary Officers in the UK said in a joint statement calling all domestic poultry farmers to enhance biosecurity at their farms. Farmers must alert APHA in Great Britain or DAERA in Northern Ireland as soon as possible if they suspect any signs of the disease.

In September 2017, the UK declared it was free of avian flu and has remained free of highly pathogenic avian influenza since then. However, a low pathogenic H5N3 strain of the disease returned in December 2019 but was dealt with by the Government. The UK declared itself free from avian influenza in June 2020.

-      Gov.uk