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Geese Tested For Bird Flu At Local Parks
(CBS4) DENVER Wildlife experts have been taking samples from geese at local parks in the Denver area to test them for bird flu. Researchers had no reason to believe the geese had bird flu.
The plan was to examine about 3,000 geese on the Front Range this month along with another 8,000 on the Western slope.
Thursday, the scientists were drawing the samples and banding geese at 3 parks around Denver, including City Park.
The testers have been rounding up about a dozen geese at a time and then using a cotton swab to take the sample. The samples were to be sent to Colorado State University for analysis. The results were expected in 4-5 days.
"If it spread through migratory birds and it came through say geese to Colorado, then yeah, it could spread through the population very rapidly," Jim Gammonley with the Division of Wildlife said.
Experts said the testing of geese now could make it easier to detect bird flu in Colorado in the future if the disease does come to the state.
One-hundred fifty geese were tested in the Denver area Thursday morning.
(CBS4) DENVER Wildlife experts have been taking samples from geese at local parks in the Denver area to test them for bird flu. Researchers had no reason to believe the geese had bird flu.
The plan was to examine about 3,000 geese on the Front Range this month along with another 8,000 on the Western slope.
Thursday, the scientists were drawing the samples and banding geese at 3 parks around Denver, including City Park.
The testers have been rounding up about a dozen geese at a time and then using a cotton swab to take the sample. The samples were to be sent to Colorado State University for analysis. The results were expected in 4-5 days.
"If it spread through migratory birds and it came through say geese to Colorado, then yeah, it could spread through the population very rapidly," Jim Gammonley with the Division of Wildlife said.
Experts said the testing of geese now could make it easier to detect bird flu in Colorado in the future if the disease does come to the state.
One-hundred fifty geese were tested in the Denver area Thursday morning.