Would any chicken keepers mind answering a few questions about bird flu?

[Thumbcat]

Hi chicken-keepers. I’m a long time user of Mumsnet and was on this board a lot when I kept a few chickens several years ago. I’m currently working on a report about the control of bird flu for a qualification and wondered if any current chicken keepers could answer some questions. Whatever your answers there’ll be no judgment from me, as I fully admit to never having shut my girls away when the law said I was supposed to. Any responses will be really useful and gratefully received.

1. If you’ve registered your birds with the APHA, have you received any notifications about bird flu and, if so, have you found these helpful?

2. If you haven’t registered your birds, what are your main reasons for not doing so?

3. If there was a mandatory housing order, would you keep your birds in an area that couldn’t be accessed by wild birds? Would doing this present practical difficulties?

4. Do you use disinfectants on footwear or equipment used for your poultry? Would you be more likely to consider doing this if you were in a high risk zone?

5. If you’ve ever needed to consult a vet for your chooks, did you have any difficulty finding one who would see poultry?

6. Would you notify either a vet or the authorities if you suspected one of your birds might have bird flu? If not, is there any other action you would take?

Many thanks and happy chicken keeping.

Hi! I'm happy to answer;

1-yes registered and do receive updates but don't like the format. Find them overly detailed and too wide ranging

2-n/a

3- yes, we have a roofed coop that is attached to the hen house and big enough for the girls during mandatory housing orders (although they aren't happy about it when kept in!)

4- no we don't. We have garden shoes that we try not to tramp through the house but that's it. Would probably tighten up a bit if in high risk - maybe leave the shoes outside instead of by the door

5-not done, luckily ours have usually died in their sleep without any illness so no vets required.

6 I'd want to notify someone if I suspected bird flu, but would have to google who to tell!

Oh and if it helps we have a flock of 6 girls currently, hoping we may get a broody this year and try to increase back up to our previous 8/9 that way

1. yes registered but haven’t received any notifications.
2. n/a
3. we made sure to have a suitably large covered run when we got our chooks in case of flockdown.
4. similar to above we have garden shoes we put on to go in to the chooks.
5. we have twice consulted a vet, the most recent 10 days ago and our girl was PTS. Our vet’s the receptionist just checked she was booking with a suitable vet when I called.
6. yes I would but I would probably need to google what I should do.

1 Registered and follow updates

2.NA

1. Yes coop is in roofed run area that's inaccessible to wild birds and I would isolate our girls

1. We don't use disinfectant yet as our area is still clear but we would if needed
2. Yes took a girl to the 'farm vet' and paid an extortionate amount of money for something that may have been nothing
3. Yes I would consult him if I suspect one had bird flu

Thank you so much for the responses so far. Sorry to hear of your recent loss snowsnow. I’m beginning to feel broody for more chickens myself

1. No
2. I have one or two chickens in my back garden for eggs for personal use and this feels like it's aimed at much larger flocks
3. Yes. We moved to a run with a mesh roof a few years ago for exactly this reason (though we let them roam in the garden most days when it's allowed)
4. No - as PP just garden shoes.
5. N/a
6. Possibly? I'm not sure how I'd know...

Have registered and receive notifications.

We have an enclosed area they can go into if there’s a need, used it before in poultry lockdowns. Poor birds don’t like it much!

Would use disinfectant if we had to, but so far not required in our area. I wear specific wellies when I go into their run, they don’t get used for anything else and are not kept in the house.

Have had a couple of birds at the local vet. Vet was delighted to see something different from all the dogs and cats. Wasn’t expensive either time. We live in a small town where there only is one vet.

Would definitely tell someone if I thought they had bird flu. There are lots of backyard flocks round here so it would be only right to pass the information on so they could be protected.

We currently have 15 hens and hope bird flu doesn’t come here, I would be devastated to lose them as they are very much pets.

Thank you, we are unfortunately down to one now and despite saying a while ago we won’t get any more when these go so we can have the space back we are absolutely planning to get some more in the next few weeks so she isn’t lonely. So I am also chicken broody!

1. Yes, not terribly user friendly but we do read them
2. N/A
3. Yes, and we've rearranged the garden to give them a larger area we can completely cover. It was a bit of a pain, though
4. No, as it's impractical to keep a disinfectant foot bath on the lawn next to the run. I would, temporarily, in event of an outbreak
5. No, local vet will see chickens. But most is DIY first aid anyway (minor wounds following pecking order dispute etc)
6. Absolutely. And I'd be heartbroken. I love my chooks.

Registered
N/a
Are completely covered and as they are silkies that has helped them not get wet too.
Use disinfectant powder on their flooring and our footwear is always clean.
Local vet does not do chickens but one 30 mins away does.
Yes would tell vet, not sure I would know bird flu but if unwell contact vets.

I do find it distressing though that birds would be destroyed if outbreak in area even if enclosed all the time. They are our pets and part of the family.

Thanks so much for all the responses. I hope your girls are enjoying the sunny weather.

I'm late to the party but I hope I'm in time.

1. Yes but no notifications I check the website regularly though
2. N/A
3. We do keep them housed undercover where required. We also keep ducks and other poultry so they are separated completely. The difficulty is in keeping them all occupied and not bored. Some of the housing measures go on too long IMO
4. We use approved disinfectant Virkon for footwear and all hard surfaces etc. in the housing and garden even when they are allowed to roam outside as we are semi rural and very rural adjacent (Nat Park) so wild birds abound. We also use overalls/stockman coats to prevent cross over and to keep normal clothes clean
5. Nope. All vets are farm trained, I know because I had a number working as direct reports when they were gaining farm animal experience. None should present any problem, however there are quite a few who hate dealing with birds so I can imagine there are vets out there who won't
6. Yes because zoonoses are incredibly dangerous.

ETA Sorry I didn't mean to quote the OP I just wanted to use it to formulate my answers and forgot. My apologies

you’ve registered your birds with the APHA, have you received any notifications about bird flu and, if so, have you found these helpful?
Yes I have registered but never get any notifications.

If you haven’t registered your birds, what are your main reasons for not doing so?

If there was a mandatory housing order, would you keep your birds in an area that couldn’t be accessed by wild birds? Would doing this present practical difficulties?
i am fine wirh doing this

Do you use disinfectants on footwear or equipment used for your poultry? Would you be more likely to consider doing this if you were in a high risk zone?
I don't but would consider it if someone explained how to go about it.

If you’ve ever needed to consult a vet for your chooks, did you have any difficulty finding one who would see poultry?
After keeping chickens for 4 years I have more chicken knowledge that any of the local vets so I don't bother wirh them any more.

Would you notify either a vet or the authorities if you suspected one of your birds might have bird flu? If not, is there any other action you would take?
I wouldn't tell someone but I would dispose of the carcass in an incinerator to prevent spread.

1. we are registered, it wasn’t any more helpful than over the last several years as I got the notifications by email/social media.
2. n/a
3. yes, we have had a number of mandatory housing orders over the past few years. We are well set up for it.
4. we use virkon s. It’s such a basic precaution, has more impact than housing and far less detriment to welfare so I don’t understand why it isn’t first line for more people.
5. we have a vet who has a particular interest in poultry.
6. I doubt it. Not after reading about how defra threatened someone’s dog with euthanasia after her chickens got bird flu and were destroyed. I’d be worried they would put us on house arrest or something like at the start of Covid. I don’t think defra are interested in keeping my animals healthy or protecting them.

1. Yep, registered with the APHA. Get notifications via text message, useful to see where latest outbreak is & reminds me to look @ what wild bird situation is.
2. n/a
3. If there was a mandatory housing order= no & never have. 1st year rigged up large tarp to keep rainwater off, disaster! All feeders/drinkers are under corrugated iron field shelters so not easily id’ed or accessed by wild birds.
4. Have some Virkon. Fortunately never had to use!
5. Local Poultry club group have a specialist poultry vet to contact.
6. If I have a sickly bird I tend to know what it’s prob is & will often cull immediately. As chickens are highly susceptible to bird flu, so probably it wouldn’t be just 1 sick chook? I’m not in contact with other poultry so I’d probably just burn or bury the bodies ; i don’t want defra to cull my other pets unnecessarily.