Avian flu detected at non-commercial poultry farm on Vancouver Island

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency says avian flu has been detected astatine a non-commercial poultry workplace connected Vancouver Island’s Saanich Peninsula.

Officials are not releasing the determination of the farm, but B.C. Agriculture Minister Lana Popham said the outbreak progressive less than 100 chickens.

The CFIA has established a superior power portion successful the country and is expected to contented an bid to destruct the infected birds.

“This is precise upsetting for farmers, and often workplace families arsenic well,” Popham said.

“Farmers who turn poultry, it’s their livelihood and often their household is progressive successful the operation. And truthful it’s truly hard emotionally for radical to perceive an bid similar that — but it’s a truly superior disease, it’s highly contagious.”

The lawsuit brings the fig of premises affected by the H5N1 influenza to 56 crossed the province.

The CFIA said the Saanich lawsuit was archetypal detected Nov. 21.

“This 1 was reported arsenic what we would telephone a ‘sick vertebrate call,'” said CFIA veterinary programme specializer Dr. Troy Bourque.

“So, the shaper would person noticed immoderate sick oregon dying birds – and past alerted either their veterinarian oregon CFIA to illustration and trial them, and past of people it came backmost affirmative for high-path influenza.”

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Popham said the hazard of dispersed is elevated during the autumn arsenic birds migrate done the province, expanding the hazard of interaction with home flocks.

“(We are) trying to beryllium proactive and having truly beardown biosecurity protocols successful spot arsenic we negociate ourselves done these seasons,” she said.

“It happens each year, we’re hopefully astatine the extremity of it.”

North America has been dealing with a concerning emergence successful the fig of avian influenza cases successful caller years. Concerns person grown this year, with the microorganism detected successful immoderate U.S. dairy cattle, on with a fistful of quality cases southbound of the border, mostly successful dairy workers.

In B.C., a teen became infected with a strain of the microorganism linked to chaotic birds, though however they contracted it remains a mystery. As of Tuesday, the teen remained successful captious information astatine BC Children’s Hospital.