Posted on 11/18/2005 9:04:44 PM PST by Fair Go
Bird flu on B.C. duck farm
VANCOUVER (CP) - A strain of H5 bird flu has been found in a duck on a commercial farm in British Columbia's Fraser Valley.
B.C. government officials said Friday there is no risk to human health, but the Canadian Food Inspection Agency has quarantined the farm under strict protocols developed after an outbreak of avian influenza in the area in 2004.
At this point, health officials say they are not sure which strain of the H5 avian bird flu was found in the duck.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is visiting farms in a five kilometre radius around the infected premises near Abbotsford to test birds and is warning bird owners to practice strict biosecurity.
"Due to the precautionary principle, it's really important to lock down as quickly as possible and make sure we quarantine before it spreads further," said Dr. Eric Young, deputy provincial health officer.
"There is no evidence of any sickness in any of these birds on the premises. We know avian influenza is common in waterfowl. It appears to be a finding we might find in any duck. Unfortunately it's in a commercial duck so the CFIA is taking this very seriously."
(Excerpt) Read more at calgarysun.com ...
The Center for Disease Control has released a list of symptoms of bird flu.
If you experience any of the following, please seek medical treatment immediately:
1. High fever
2. Congestion
3. Nausea
4. Fatigue
5. Aching in the joints
6. An irresistible urge to shit on someone's windshield
Semper Fi
Caught if from a migrating duck?
BTW, I think it is ducks that can have the flu and not exhibit any effects. And, if this is true, why did they do a test?
Article said it was common in waterfowl, appears to be a finding we might find in any (wild ?)duck.
So this variant strain of H5 is common. Why then should we be concerned? I'm getting confused.
Thinking about going duck hunting but the fed duck stamp is getting to be a costly tax for the little I go. Maybe I'll buy a duck and shoot some crows.
It has to be H5N1 strain to raise concern. Even if the virus turns out to be H5N1, that in and of itself won't mean the virus is closely related to the Asian strain that is causing problems. After molecular analysis of the virus is done they'll know if the viruses are linked.
Wild fowl have been getting flu for as long as humans, I would guess. Some strains are deadlier than others. Some are asymptomatic (no symptoms).
Sheesh....seems like every bird, duck, fowl in the world is getting tested for the flu these days.....do they have enough of the shots for THEM?
If they would have "ducked" it would have just "flu" over them.
Apparently so. China is presently giving shots to millions, maybe billions of birds.
Do you guys ever correspond?
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