Ghana - 1100 poultry destroyed

[sharon sanders]

Bird flu hits Aflao

about 1100 birds have been destroyed following the discovery of another case of the Bird flu disease at the border town of Aflao near Lome.

Officials of the Veterinary Service Department detected the virus after a poultry farmer in a community at Aflao took his sick birds to the Veterinary laboratory here in Accra to be tested. The birds reportedly started dying since last Wednesday but did not show any signs of the disease.

The Volta Regional Director of the Veterinary Services, Dr Ben Aniwa told Joy News measures have been put in place in Aflao to prevent the disease from spreading to other parts of the region.

He assured: “We have started the control measures. We have destroyed about 1100 birds and all other birds around the area. Our people are on high alert to make sure that the disease is put under control at the shortest possible time.'

The Volta region becomes the third region to be hit by the disease after it was discovered in Tema of the Greater Accra region and Sunyani in the Brong Ahafo region.

http://www.myjoyonline.com/news/200706/5850.asp

[HenryN]

Re: Ghana - 1100 poultry destroyed

Commentary at

http://www.recombinomics.com/News/06200701/H5N1_Ghana_Spread.html

[HenryN]

Re: Ghana - 1100 poultry destroyed

Aflao bans movement of birds

The Director of the Volta Regional Veterinary Service, Ben Aniwa says all local bird markets in the Aflao District have been closed and a temporary ban placed on the movement of birds.

The measure followed the detection of the bird flu disease at Sefenukope near Aflao on Wednesday, bringing to three the number of regions hit by the deadly disease, after Accra (Tema) and Brong Ahafo.

A team has been put in place to monitor farms to prevent a spread of the bird flu.

Vet officials have already destroyed some 1500 birds on the farm on which the virus was detected.

Story from Myjoyonline.Com News:

http://www.myjoyonline.com/health/200706/5901.asp

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Ghana - 1100 poultry destroyed

Bird flu case in Aflao confirmed

Ho, June 21, GNA - Dr Ben Aniwa, the Volta Regional Veterinary Officer, has confirmed the presence of bird flu on a farm in Aflao and said 1,000 birds in the farm have been destroyed.

Dr Aniwa told the GNA that all birds in the vicinity of the farm were also destroyed, bird markets closed while the movement of poultry and poultry products stopped.

Mr Geoffrey Agbleze, Ketu District Officer of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA), said officers at the border have been directed to stop movement of birds in and out of the country. He said a massive public education campaign on the disease would be mounted with the assistance of the Information Services Department (ISD).

Mr Agbleze said the district taskforce on the disease would also take advantage of the District Cultural Festival of basic schools to send the message across to the communities through the pupils. Mr Victor Atsakpo, District Quarantine Officer, told the GNA that his office was collaborating with security agencies at entry points to check the flow of birds into and out of the area.

He said even before the detection of the bird flu at Aflao, trade in live birds across the border with Togo had been low as the Togolese border authorities were seizing and destroying all live birds being sent into Togo.

Mr Atsakpo said the existence of several illegal entry points into the country from Togo was a major challenge.

http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/artikel.php?ID=125945

[HenryN]

Re: Ghana - 1100 poultry destroyed

Ghana and Togo locations

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msa=0&ll=6.257413,1.614604&spn=4.978339,11.217041&t=h&z=7&om=1&msid=106484775090296685271.000435002162a3b1fa8ae

[Commonground]

Re: Ghana - 1100 poultry destroyed

Thank you Dr. Niman for the maps! They are so helpful.

[Treyfish]

Re: Ghana - 1100 poultry destroyed

<TABLE width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=center align=middle>Wednesday, 11 July 2007</TD><TD vAlign=center width=80></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<CENTER>Don't eat carcass - Expert

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Nkwanta (V/R), July 11, GNA - It is dangerous to eat the carcass of game or farm animals if the source of death is could not be ascertained, an expert has warned.

Dr Eric Obeng Bempong, Nkwanta District Veterinary Officer, also advised that birds should be handled with care and not taken close to the nostrils and that case of sick birds should be reported immediately to the veterinary office.

He told the Ghana News Agency that communities in the district were living nothing to chance in their support of surveillance measures to prevent against the spread of avian flu to the district. Dr Bempong said movement of birds in the district had been banned and that a surveillance team was on high alert, monitoring communities close to the border with Togo.

He said the rate of vaccination of animals and birds in the district this year had gone up appreciably from what it had been previously.

Dr Bempong said 54 vaccinations against rabies were carried out within the second quarter of this year, up from 10 per quarter in previously.

He said 5,720 local birds were vaccinated against New Castle disease as against a target of 5,000 birds per quarter. Dr Bempong said vaccination against New Castle was important for the early detection of bird flu because both diseases exhibit quite similar symptoms.

He said a total of 2,076 small ruminants were vaccinated against Pest de Petit Ruminant, exceeding a target of 2,000. Dr Bempong said the treatment of cattle against Contagious Bovine Pleuro Pricomonia had dropped from a target of 1,000 to 650 per quarter due to relocation of cattle from the district following attacks from Konkombas.

http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePag....php?ID=127005