Monitoring zone in place after bird flu case identified in Flintshire

A fresh case of bird flu has been identified in Flintshire, with a 3km monitoring zone put in place around the premises.

Flintshire County Council stated: “On 7 November, Flintshire County Council Trading Standards (Animal Health) received notification from the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) of the presence of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 on a captive bird premises near Buckley. 

“A 3km Captive Bird (Monitoring) Zone has been put in place around the infected premises.”

There have been more than 200 cases of avian influenza – also known as bird flu – confirmed in the UK since late October 2021.

The disease has been detected at more than 70 premises since the beginning of October, as well as multiple reports in wild birds.

A Welsh Government spokesman has previously said mandatory housing of poultry – introduced in England on 7 November – would not be introduced in Wales at this stage.

Responsibilities

The UK health agencies advise that the risk to public health from the virus is very low and the UK food standards agencies advise that avian influenza poses a very low food safety risk for UK consumers.

However, responsibilities of people who keep birds include:

• Staying vigilant for signs of the disease such as increased mortality, respiratory distress and drops in food or water intake, or egg production.
• Consulting a veterinary surgeon in the first instance if your birds are unwell.
• If they suspect that avian influenza could be causing illness in birds, they must, by law, report this to the Animal and Plant Health Agency. This will trigger a disease investigation by APHA vets.

They must apply strict biosecurity measures to prevent any materials, equipment, vehicles, clothing, feed or bedding that could have been contaminated from wild birds coming onto your premises.

Full details and a checklist are available here.