Dr. Rod Hall, D.V.M., Oklahoma State Veterinarian issued the following statement warning of the prevalence of highly pathogenic Avian Influenza:
I’d like to make everyone aware that Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza is very prevalent in the USA in general and in Oklahoma and our surrounding states specifically at this time. Here in Oklahoma, we’ve had one backyard flock in Roger Mills County and two commercial flocks in Adair County become infected in the past month. There have been more than 30 cases confirmed in the U.S. in the past week. Many of those have been small backyard flocks, but many have been commercial flocks, one in Iowa with 4.2 million hens. Poultry that become infected either die or are euthanized to help prevent the spread of the disease.
Due to the warmer-than-usual fall, the migratory waterfowl are still migrating south, and from reports we’ve received, there are still a lot of birds north of us that will be coming through Oklahoma in the next few weeks. Many of those ducks and geese are carrying and shedding this virus.
Please advise your clients, friends, relatives, and stakeholders to be aware of the danger to domestic poultry and institute the best biosecurity they can for the next several weeks. This includes keeping poultry penned away from waterfowl and water where waterfowl gather, not allowing waterfowl to approach domestic poultry spaces, and changing clothes and shoes before going to your domestic poultry area after being in locations where waterfowl have defecated.
This virus is very transmissible, which is evident by the fact that commercial poultry operations that have good routine biosecurity become infected from exposure to waterfowl and by the introduction of the virus on people and equipment.
Here is a link to the OSU Fact Sheet on biosecurity for backyard flocks: afs-8301-small-flock-biosecurity-for-prevention-of-avian-influenza.pdf .
