Avian flu closes farm (H7N3)
Avian flu closes farm (H7N3)
Avian flu closes farm
Poultry operation north of Regina under quarantine
JOE FRIESEN
From Friday's Globe and Mail
September 28, 2007 at 6:04 AM EDT
<!-- dateline -->WINNIPEG<!-- /dateline --> ? A strain of avian influenza that led officials to order the killing of 17 million birds in British Columbia three years ago is tearing through a poultry farm in Saskatchewan.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency said the chickens are infected with a highly pathogenic H7N3 form of the virus, which is deadly for poultry but unlikely to cause serious illness in humans.
The problem was first reported on Sunday, when an unusual number of chickens fell ill and died, but not publicly disclosed until yesterday when a laboratory was able to confirm the pathogen.
A three-kilometre perimeter has been established around the affected farm, located about 80 kilometres north of Regina, and any poultry operation within 10 kilometres will be closely monitored. All 50,000 chickens on the farm will be killed by carbon dioxide gas, the CFIA said, and the farm will remain under quarantine.
Sandra Stephens, a veterinarian with the CFIA, said at this point it's impossible to pinpoint the source of the outbreak, but said the virus may have been carried into the barn on clothes or equipment, or even by a wild bird.
The concern is that the virus may spread to other farms, as it did in B.C. in 2004, which would make a mass cull necessary. But the CFIA says that in Saskatchewan, unlike B.C., farms are quite distant from one another, making it harder for the virus to travel quickly.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture reacted yesterday by closing the border to poultry exports from Saskatchewan, not all of Canada, a move applauded by the Chicken Farmers of Canada.
The United States hasn't imported any poultry from Saskatchewan since 2005, and Chicken Farmers spokeswoman Lisa Bishop-Spencer said a regional ban is all that's warranted at this point. In any case, the Canadian poultry industry is geared primarily for domestic consumption, and exports make up only 7.5 per cent of sales, Ms. Bishop-Spencer said.
The affected farm is a broiler-breeder operation, which produces eggs that hatch broiler chicks, but Dr. Stephens said there's no chance of the virus entering the food chain because it kills any embryo it infects.
In British Columbia's Fraser Valley in 2004, two people developed conjunctivitis after coming in contact with infected birds, but their symptoms were not serious.
Todd Hatchette, director of virology at Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre in Halifax, said the H7 version of avian flu can infect humans but is much milder than the H5 version.
"This virus is really a problem for agriculture," Dr. Hatchette said.
The farm is expected to stay under a quarantine for at least 21 days after it has been cleaned and disinfected. Infected materials are then disposed of either through composting or by being buried.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070928.wquarantine28/BNStory/National/home
Avian flu closes farm (H7N3)
Avian flu closes farm
Poultry operation north of Regina under quarantine
JOE FRIESEN
From Friday's Globe and Mail
September 28, 2007 at 6:04 AM EDT
<!-- dateline -->WINNIPEG<!-- /dateline --> ? A strain of avian influenza that led officials to order the killing of 17 million birds in British Columbia three years ago is tearing through a poultry farm in Saskatchewan.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency said the chickens are infected with a highly pathogenic H7N3 form of the virus, which is deadly for poultry but unlikely to cause serious illness in humans.
The problem was first reported on Sunday, when an unusual number of chickens fell ill and died, but not publicly disclosed until yesterday when a laboratory was able to confirm the pathogen.
A three-kilometre perimeter has been established around the affected farm, located about 80 kilometres north of Regina, and any poultry operation within 10 kilometres will be closely monitored. All 50,000 chickens on the farm will be killed by carbon dioxide gas, the CFIA said, and the farm will remain under quarantine.
Sandra Stephens, a veterinarian with the CFIA, said at this point it's impossible to pinpoint the source of the outbreak, but said the virus may have been carried into the barn on clothes or equipment, or even by a wild bird.
The concern is that the virus may spread to other farms, as it did in B.C. in 2004, which would make a mass cull necessary. But the CFIA says that in Saskatchewan, unlike B.C., farms are quite distant from one another, making it harder for the virus to travel quickly.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture reacted yesterday by closing the border to poultry exports from Saskatchewan, not all of Canada, a move applauded by the Chicken Farmers of Canada.
The United States hasn't imported any poultry from Saskatchewan since 2005, and Chicken Farmers spokeswoman Lisa Bishop-Spencer said a regional ban is all that's warranted at this point. In any case, the Canadian poultry industry is geared primarily for domestic consumption, and exports make up only 7.5 per cent of sales, Ms. Bishop-Spencer said.
The affected farm is a broiler-breeder operation, which produces eggs that hatch broiler chicks, but Dr. Stephens said there's no chance of the virus entering the food chain because it kills any embryo it infects.
In British Columbia's Fraser Valley in 2004, two people developed conjunctivitis after coming in contact with infected birds, but their symptoms were not serious.
Todd Hatchette, director of virology at Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre in Halifax, said the H7 version of avian flu can infect humans but is much milder than the H5 version.
"This virus is really a problem for agriculture," Dr. Hatchette said.
The farm is expected to stay under a quarantine for at least 21 days after it has been cleaned and disinfected. Infected materials are then disposed of either through composting or by being buried.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070928.wquarantine28/BNStory/National/home
