Bird flu - now it's here what precautions will you take?

[jmum6]

Now it's reported in Scotland it's only a matter of time before it works it way south.

So will you take any precautions?

My mum and dad keep free range chickens, bantams and parakeets, should I carry on visiting with a 7month old ds?

I thought it had been confirmed but the BBC news just said now that the results are due this lunch time???

Oh so it was proper bird flu then H5N1?

Haven't seen any news this lunchtime.

Utopia - Where are you posting from? Whats it like living with it?

I am more concerned about the foot and mouth style restrictions that might be imposed than bird flu itself. What will freerange chicken farmers do? I suppose, selfishly, I am not looking forward to a summer where we have to avoid anywhere with water because of the ducks.

Oh the media love to whip up a frenzy. All this histeria. It was only one swan. And even if bird flu comes to this country in epidemic proportion, we really should get it somewhat into perspective, yes people have contracted and died from the disease, but how many? About 150 people have contracted bird flu out of a world population of ... about 6 billion? I think the chances are remote, even if the chickens next door or the sparrows on the bird table have h5n1.

Problem is the media actively looks for the next frenzy to get worked up about. This bird flu thing really isn't news. All that's changed is our understanding of how flu works - increase in our knowledge of epidemiology studies.

Yes, we always have a risk of the next flu pandemic - but we have been every single bloody day since 1918. Why all the hoohah now and not last year/last decade? Because now is the time the media have deigned to whip us into frenzy about it.

The sky is not falling.

Oh for heaven's sake!!!

I keep 3 chickens and I'm not concerned. I would be seriously pissed off if friends stopped visiting me because of the hens.

Their food and water is kept under cover (so unavailable to wild bilds) but the chickens are still allowed to free range. Generally I don't find them communing with wild birds....and I won't be keeping them indoors until DEFRA advises me too.

With 2 small children I wouldn't take any unnecessary risks - and I am a very risk averse person generally, but really can see no danger currently.

The only concessions I will be taking currently is ensuring that my children avoid contact with the chickens, and when I am cleaning chicken shit out of their chicken house I will wash my hands ultra thoroughly afterwards

I'd love to keep chickens

Damn I'm sure the sky was falling - bird flu, measles, water shortage, politicians, terrorists, won't get to see Desperate Housewives series 2 until it comes out on DVD, really not getting anywhere with packing for my trip back next week to the delights of the UK.....

Be grateful you lot I won't be posting randomly for 6 weeks!

Utopia - are you under a new name?

Avoid anywhere with water because of ducks? And the back garden because of sparrows, and don't stay indoors either, if you have a budgie...

How perceptive of you ..

you should see the headlines for our local paper! you'd think ebola was on the loose or malaria carrying mosquitos were swarming the coasts.

....but Blu - I would rather not reveal my previos name if it's all the same to you. Thank you.

Utopia now we're all guessing!

Rhubarb or custard?

It's all over the news now. but look at piffles post on the H5N1 thread

Now there are 14 other birds being tested too!!

Ok I'm panicing now. [shamed faced emoticon]

What precautions will i take? Well i could move out of Fife, been looking for an excuse to go!

I don't know why people are surprised really - it's not like we can stop birds flying so it was bound to turn up in the Uk sooner or later.

The only reason I can see for any concern is if you are a poultry farmer.

Anyway, at least a chicken will be nice and cheap in the supermarket now.

\link{http://www.info.gov.hk/info/flu/eng/faq.htm\Well, I'll not be blowing at any birds' bottoms, that's for sure - see item 18}

pmsl at no 18!

This is all being blown out of proportion right now anyway.
The swan was found on a beach, so it was more than likely it was blown in from the continent.

My sister lives in Fife and she was in that town today, apparently it crawling with camera crews and journos WTF???
The bird had been lying there for two weeks!! pecked at by seagulls and the like. Urghhhh.
The results took a week to come back because it was so badly decomposed!!

I can't say I'm worried at all.I wouldn't tryst any advice DEFRA give though,they don't have a clue.Look at the mess they made of the Foot & Mouth outbreak.

Apparently the Gov has a plan for mass graves in case bird flu mutate into a form a form that is easily transmissible between humans ...

April 2 (Bloomberg) -- Avian influenza could kill as many as 320,000 people in the U.K. and stretch the capacity of the nation's funeral services, the Sunday Times reported, citing a confidential report prepared by the British Home Office.

Families would have to wait for four months to bury their dead should the H5N1 virus mutate into a form that is easily transmissible between humans, the newspaper's Web site cited the report, Managing Excess Deaths in an Influenza Pandemic, as saying. The report was dated March 22, the newspaper said.

Authorities in England and Wales have a capacity to handle 48,000 deaths should a bird flu pandemic last for 15 weeks, the report said. Emergency services in such a situation would have to enforce mass burials, the report said.

Bird flu has killed 105 people, mostly in Asia, according to the World Health Organization's Web site.

(The Sunday Times, 4-2)
How scary is that !!!