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Staying informed is most valuable weapon against Avian Flu
Staying informed is most valuable weapon against Avian Flu
http://www.kuam.com/news/18746.aspx
http://www.kuam.com/news/18746.aspx
by Jason Salas, KUAM News
Monday, August 14, 2006
Dr. Tom Poole is Guam's territorial veterinarian. Conducting his research at the Department of Agriculture, he says while Avian Flu does pose a global threat, on Guam much is being done to combat bird flu pandemic from ever occurring, keeping it safely away from island residents.
Poole told KUAM News, "So there's a wild bird surveillance project, and then we are also going to be doing another bird that sort of falls through the cracks, and that is our domestic poultry, the feral chickens. And nobody really wants to own those, because they are not USDA commercial birds. And their not migratory wild birds either, and those two groups of birds are being tested by different people, and neither of them are really interested in testing the feral birds, which on Guam are probably the most important ones to test."
Contrary to popular myth, says Dr. Poole, bird flu isn't easily communicable in humans. He credits this mainstream misunderstanding of the disease as one of the reasons for the mass concern about it. "Well, because H5N1 is a disease primarily of domestic poultry, and wild birds have it and carry it, usually don't suffer from it greatly, domestic chickens do, so our great fear on Guam is that the migratory birds will bring it to Guam."
While Avian Flu is still a relatively new threat to global health, data is still being collected to profile it, and local scientists are contributing their own studies to help understand its nature and effects. "What we're going to do is begin to sample the wild birds, and the domestic chicken part still isn't fixed yet, but the wild we're going to do in a variety of ways," Poole added.
Dr. Poole says at this point the most effective preventive measure the community can use is information, recommending people educate themselves on the disease and separating fact from fiction. On that note, the Department of Agriculture has published an informative brochure answering many of the questions people have with bird flu. You can call 734-3942 to get a copy or for more information.
Monday, August 14, 2006
Dr. Tom Poole is Guam's territorial veterinarian. Conducting his research at the Department of Agriculture, he says while Avian Flu does pose a global threat, on Guam much is being done to combat bird flu pandemic from ever occurring, keeping it safely away from island residents.
Poole told KUAM News, "So there's a wild bird surveillance project, and then we are also going to be doing another bird that sort of falls through the cracks, and that is our domestic poultry, the feral chickens. And nobody really wants to own those, because they are not USDA commercial birds. And their not migratory wild birds either, and those two groups of birds are being tested by different people, and neither of them are really interested in testing the feral birds, which on Guam are probably the most important ones to test."
Contrary to popular myth, says Dr. Poole, bird flu isn't easily communicable in humans. He credits this mainstream misunderstanding of the disease as one of the reasons for the mass concern about it. "Well, because H5N1 is a disease primarily of domestic poultry, and wild birds have it and carry it, usually don't suffer from it greatly, domestic chickens do, so our great fear on Guam is that the migratory birds will bring it to Guam."
While Avian Flu is still a relatively new threat to global health, data is still being collected to profile it, and local scientists are contributing their own studies to help understand its nature and effects. "What we're going to do is begin to sample the wild birds, and the domestic chicken part still isn't fixed yet, but the wild we're going to do in a variety of ways," Poole added.
Dr. Poole says at this point the most effective preventive measure the community can use is information, recommending people educate themselves on the disease and separating fact from fiction. On that note, the Department of Agriculture has published an informative brochure answering many of the questions people have with bird flu. You can call 734-3942 to get a copy or for more information.