http://www.gazetteextra.com/birdflu042706.asp
Possibility of bird flu downplayed
(Published Thursday, April 27, 2006 11:15:45 AM CDT)
By Jim Leute
Gazette Staff
Bird flu in Janesville?
Possible? Yes.
Likely? Not at all, said Bill MacFarlane, who owns and operates MacFarlane Pheasants in Janesville, the largest pheasant farm in North America and one of the biggest in the world.
Bird flu, technically known as avian influenza virus, has made worldwide news since 2003. More than 100 cases of bird flu have touched humans, and more than 60 deaths have been reported in Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Avian influenza virus usually refers to influenza A viruses found mainly in birds, but infections can occur in humans. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) says the risk is generally low to most people because the viruses do not usually infect humans.
The operative words there are "do not usually."
"Yes, there is a disease called avian influenza, a virus that can kill birds and has been around for however long," said MacFarlane, who also is president of the North American Gamebird Association, which represents more than 1,500 members in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Great Britain.
"There have been outbreaks of bird flu in the United States over the years. But the real concern is that the influenza virus can make people sick, and that can happen to those handling and working in close proximity to sick birds."
Regional outbreaks are far different from a pandemic, which is a disease that affects the world. The avian influenza outbreaks in Southeast Asia are limited in scope and confined primarily to animals, according to WHO.
But if the virus changes into a fully transmissible human pandemic-what's called mutation in scientific speak-it could spread around the world, according to the Swiss-based organization that is the United Nations' specialized health agency.
WHO says pandemics, which can encircle the globe within three months, are rare. They have typically occurred every 10 to 50 years. In the 20th century, there were three: 1918 (about 40 million deaths), 1957 (more than 2 million deaths) and 1968 (about 1 million deaths).
"So far, the disease has not mutated," MacFarlane said. "But there is a fear that it could."
WHO says three conditions must be met before a pandemic begins:
-- A new influenza subtype that has not previously circulated in humans must emerge.
-- The new subtype must be capable of causing disease in humans.
-- The virus must be capable of being passed easily among humans.
Only the last condition has yet to be fulfilled by the current strain of bird flu, also referred to as H5N1, WHO reports.
For someone in Janesville to get bird flu, McFarlane said, it would most likely be the result of a virus mutation. The disease, he said, would likely appear through a visitor from a country where the virus had mutated to a human-to-human contagious form.
Locally, the chances of contracting the disease from sick birds are slim, he said.
"All responsible poultry farmers are participating in an avian influenza testing program," he said. "We've been monitoring our poultry for several years now."
In March, Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle hosted a statewide summit to discuss planning for a potential pandemic flu outbreak. More than 300 officials and community leaders met to discuss preparedness and coordination of plans in the event of a pandemic flu outbreak.
"We are doing everything possible to be prepared," Doyle said. "But good preparation plans are never static. Any response to a pandemic would have to be coordinated on a statewide, national, and international scale."
The virus in birds-not humans-would most likely reach the United States through the Alaskan flyway, MacFarlane said, adding that domestically raised birds are under strict scrutiny.
"Are there birds dying? Absolutely," he said. "But the chance of that happening in Janesville in the bird form isn't as great as it is in Alaska or a part of the country that has huge concentrations of poultry.
"Wisconsin just isn't a major poultry state."
MacFarlane's birds routinely undergo blood tests, and no signs of avian influenza have ever been found, he said.
"If we had it here, we would notice sick birds with specific symptoms," he said. "The state would be in here within 48 hours, and every bird would be dead.
"And I'd be out of business."
MacFarlane employs strict bio-security protocols on his farms. Movement between the business' operations is restricted.
He likens his protocols to those used in hospitals.
"No one is walking around between the intensive care unit and the maternity ward," he said. "That's not because there is a problem; it's just good bio-security."
Before any of MacFarlane's birds are shipped out of state, a veterinarian must sign off on their health.
"It's just a matter of due diligence," he said.
Due to the proximity of Chicago's O'Hare International Airport, many of MacFarlane's pheasant chicks are shipped to hunting preserves around the world.
Orders are up this year, MacFarlane said, but a customer in Scotland did cancel a shipment of chicks over bird flu concerns.
"The question for me is how far will it go," he said. "My greatest fear in all this is not being able to ship birds."
His fears don't center on sickness in his birds, employees or residents of Janesville.
People in Janesville have no direct contact with MacFarlane's birds, he said.
"Chances are (bird flu) won't happen in a low-poultry state like Wisconsin," he said. "That's not to say it couldn't happen, but I think a lot of people are really beating the drum because if it does happen, then everyone will say they didn't do anything to prevent it."
And that's the message organizations such as the CDC and WHO are spreading, as well.
"As a global public health organization, WHO has a responsibility to alert the international community when it appears that the world is moving closer to a pandemic," the organization said on one of its many Web pages devoted to avian influenza.
"It may be years before a pandemic hits the world, and it may ultimately be sparked by a virus other than H5N1. While WHO recognizes that openly talking about a pandemic threat may raise concerns worldwide, we would not be fulfilling our public health mandate if we were not to warn the world of this evolving threat."
It may be evolving, but the threat is still not significant in Janesville, MacFarlane said.
Possibility of bird flu downplayed
(Published Thursday, April 27, 2006 11:15:45 AM CDT)
By Jim Leute
Gazette Staff
Bird flu in Janesville?
Possible? Yes.
Likely? Not at all, said Bill MacFarlane, who owns and operates MacFarlane Pheasants in Janesville, the largest pheasant farm in North America and one of the biggest in the world.
Bird flu, technically known as avian influenza virus, has made worldwide news since 2003. More than 100 cases of bird flu have touched humans, and more than 60 deaths have been reported in Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Avian influenza virus usually refers to influenza A viruses found mainly in birds, but infections can occur in humans. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) says the risk is generally low to most people because the viruses do not usually infect humans.
The operative words there are "do not usually."
"Yes, there is a disease called avian influenza, a virus that can kill birds and has been around for however long," said MacFarlane, who also is president of the North American Gamebird Association, which represents more than 1,500 members in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Great Britain.
"There have been outbreaks of bird flu in the United States over the years. But the real concern is that the influenza virus can make people sick, and that can happen to those handling and working in close proximity to sick birds."
Regional outbreaks are far different from a pandemic, which is a disease that affects the world. The avian influenza outbreaks in Southeast Asia are limited in scope and confined primarily to animals, according to WHO.
But if the virus changes into a fully transmissible human pandemic-what's called mutation in scientific speak-it could spread around the world, according to the Swiss-based organization that is the United Nations' specialized health agency.
WHO says pandemics, which can encircle the globe within three months, are rare. They have typically occurred every 10 to 50 years. In the 20th century, there were three: 1918 (about 40 million deaths), 1957 (more than 2 million deaths) and 1968 (about 1 million deaths).
"So far, the disease has not mutated," MacFarlane said. "But there is a fear that it could."
WHO says three conditions must be met before a pandemic begins:
-- A new influenza subtype that has not previously circulated in humans must emerge.
-- The new subtype must be capable of causing disease in humans.
-- The virus must be capable of being passed easily among humans.
Only the last condition has yet to be fulfilled by the current strain of bird flu, also referred to as H5N1, WHO reports.
For someone in Janesville to get bird flu, McFarlane said, it would most likely be the result of a virus mutation. The disease, he said, would likely appear through a visitor from a country where the virus had mutated to a human-to-human contagious form.
Locally, the chances of contracting the disease from sick birds are slim, he said.
"All responsible poultry farmers are participating in an avian influenza testing program," he said. "We've been monitoring our poultry for several years now."
In March, Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle hosted a statewide summit to discuss planning for a potential pandemic flu outbreak. More than 300 officials and community leaders met to discuss preparedness and coordination of plans in the event of a pandemic flu outbreak.
"We are doing everything possible to be prepared," Doyle said. "But good preparation plans are never static. Any response to a pandemic would have to be coordinated on a statewide, national, and international scale."
The virus in birds-not humans-would most likely reach the United States through the Alaskan flyway, MacFarlane said, adding that domestically raised birds are under strict scrutiny.
"Are there birds dying? Absolutely," he said. "But the chance of that happening in Janesville in the bird form isn't as great as it is in Alaska or a part of the country that has huge concentrations of poultry.
"Wisconsin just isn't a major poultry state."
MacFarlane's birds routinely undergo blood tests, and no signs of avian influenza have ever been found, he said.
"If we had it here, we would notice sick birds with specific symptoms," he said. "The state would be in here within 48 hours, and every bird would be dead.
"And I'd be out of business."
MacFarlane employs strict bio-security protocols on his farms. Movement between the business' operations is restricted.
He likens his protocols to those used in hospitals.
"No one is walking around between the intensive care unit and the maternity ward," he said. "That's not because there is a problem; it's just good bio-security."
Before any of MacFarlane's birds are shipped out of state, a veterinarian must sign off on their health.
"It's just a matter of due diligence," he said.
Due to the proximity of Chicago's O'Hare International Airport, many of MacFarlane's pheasant chicks are shipped to hunting preserves around the world.
Orders are up this year, MacFarlane said, but a customer in Scotland did cancel a shipment of chicks over bird flu concerns.
"The question for me is how far will it go," he said. "My greatest fear in all this is not being able to ship birds."
His fears don't center on sickness in his birds, employees or residents of Janesville.
People in Janesville have no direct contact with MacFarlane's birds, he said.
"Chances are (bird flu) won't happen in a low-poultry state like Wisconsin," he said. "That's not to say it couldn't happen, but I think a lot of people are really beating the drum because if it does happen, then everyone will say they didn't do anything to prevent it."
And that's the message organizations such as the CDC and WHO are spreading, as well.
"As a global public health organization, WHO has a responsibility to alert the international community when it appears that the world is moving closer to a pandemic," the organization said on one of its many Web pages devoted to avian influenza.
"It may be years before a pandemic hits the world, and it may ultimately be sparked by a virus other than H5N1. While WHO recognizes that openly talking about a pandemic threat may raise concerns worldwide, we would not be fulfilling our public health mandate if we were not to warn the world of this evolving threat."
It may be evolving, but the threat is still not significant in Janesville, MacFarlane said.