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Posted on 10/21/2005 4:39:54 PM PDT by areafiftyone
A South American parrot which died in quarantine in the UK had avian flu, it has been revealed. The parrot, which was imported from Suriname in mid-September, was infected with the H5 strain of the virus.
The Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) insists there is no cause for alarm. Chief Veterinary Officer Debby Reynolds said: "The confirmed case does not affect the UK's official disease free status." That was because "the disease has been identified in imported birds during quarantine."
She said further tests were needed to see if the parrot had picked up the deadly HN51 strain of bird flu. The latest development comes amid growing fears of an avian flu pandemic in Europe.
EU health ministers held emergency talks following the discovery of the HN51 strain in Romania and Turkey.
The big concern is that the virus could mutate, enabling it to be passed from person to person. The South American bird was part of a mixed consignment of 148 parrots and "soft bills" that arrived in Britain on September 16. They were being held with a number of other birds from Taiwan. Defra says the birds, which were being kept in a biosecure quarantine unit, have all been humanely culled.
Ms Reynolds said the "incident showed the importance of the UK's quarantine system". She added: "We have had similar incidents in the past where disease has been discovered but successfully contained." Defra stressed it was "very difficult" for humans to contract avian influenza.
But to be safe all those who came in contact with the culled birds have been given antiviral treatment.
amen... thats the first thing i was going to post...
glad we are all on same page
at least one sane spot in the universe
It's a pretty serious subject, but that's the first thing I thought too. :-)
These things just write themselves sometimes, don't they. LOL
Oh well it would have died from beak decay
LOL...."Pining for the fjords."
'elllow...'es a Pretty Polly...eh!?!?
Prolly one of the finest 'bits' ever done...perhaps since "Who's on First"..
Happy Frieday
Jeeze what are we going to do it's an EX-PARROT!
Wake up Polly!
Beautiful plummage ...
"You stunned 'im."
sky is falling. First the Parrots and then us. Doomed I tell you.
The really scary thing about this story is that US Customs & Border Protection agents catch many people smuggling in exotic birds every year. They are so valuable, sometimes a number of them are worth more on the street than a load of drugs. I really hadn't thought about this before reading this article, but it is a real possibility that the bird flu might well be introduced to this country by bird smugglers.
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