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Avian Influenza Found in Duck on Commercial Farm in B.C. Fraser Valley

Posted on: Saturday, 19 November 2005, 12:00 CST

By AMY CARMICHAEL

VANCOUVER (CP) - A strain of H5 bird flu has been found in a duck on a commercial farm in British Columbia's Fraser Valley.

B.C. government officials said Friday there is no risk to human health, but the Canadian Food Inspection Agency has quarantined the farm under strict protocols developed after an outbreak of avian influenza in the area in 2004.

At this point, health officials say they are not sure which strain of the H5 avian bird flu was found in the duck.

Ken Faulk, the owner of Fraser Valley Duck and Goose, told the radio station CKNW that he was informed Friday that one of his ducks tested positive for avian flu.

He told CKNW he is prepared to depopulate his flock if that is what is necessary to stop the virus from spreading.

"We as an industry have committed to get on track. If it takes a pre-emptive cull to remove the problem that's what we're committed to do," Faulk told CKNW.

"Difficult as that is for all of us, it is better than what happened last time when it wasn't handled that way and was allowed to get out of hand."

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is visiting farms in a five kilometre radius around the infected premises near Abbotsford to test birds and is warning bird owners to practice strict biosecurity.

"Due to the precautionary principle, it's really important to lock down as quickly as possible and make sure we quarantine before it spreads further," said Dr. Eric Young, deputy provincial health officer.

"There is no evidence of any sickness in any of these birds on the premises. We know avian influenza is common in waterfowl. It appears to be a finding we might find in any duck. Unfortunately it's in a commercial duck so the CFIA is taking this very seriously."

An outbreak of avian flu in 2004 eventually hit farms in a 70-kilometre-wide swath from the Vancouver's eastern suburbs to Chilliwack in the eastern Fraser Valley, forcing the slaughter of 17 million birds.

In the end, about three million birds were found to be diseased and the rest were allowed to be sold to consumers.

The 2004 outbreak was of H7N3, a highly pathogenic strain.

Most viruses are what's called low pathogenicity, posing little or no threat to human health and even modest threat to domestic poultry. Typically outbreaks of low path avian flu viruses lead to a drop off of egg production in domestic poultry.

But two subtypes of viruses, the H5s and the H7s, are sometimes found in what is known as a highly pathogenic form. Those viruses decimate poultry stocks.

Two weeks ago, the B.C. government announced it had discovered H5 avian flu in wild birds in surveillance in Merritt that was conducted in August.

Tests have determined about 174 ducks were positive for the H5 virus from more than 700 samples that were taken from young ducks.

Officials said the results should simply serve as a reminder that avian influenza is present in wild birds. They are carriers of the disease and poultry producers have been told to limit exposure of domestic flocks to wild birds.

Scientists say the virus may have always been in the wild bird population and that it's showing up more often because there is more surveillance now.

Friday's announcement comes at a time of heightened awareness about avian flu because of the deadly H5N1 virus circulating in poultry in Asia and parts of Europe. The H5N1 in Asia is a high path virus.

Canadian officials said they are reacting to the finding of the infected duck much faster than they did during the outbreak in 2004, which taught the industry tough lessons.

Dr. Jim Clark, a director of animal health with the food inspection agency, said inspectors are on top of this outbreak.

"We're going to be much more aggressive in terms of how we deal with this situation," he said.

Because of advances in diagnostic testing, scientists know more earlier and are able to quarantine farms more quickly.

"We quarantined this farm two to three days ahead of where we would have been in 2004. We are also doing more intense surveillance around the farm than we were in 2004," Clark said.

A sample from the infected duck has been flown to the Canadian Science Centre for Human and Animal Health in Winnipeg, which contains one of the world's most secure laboratories for the testing of deadly diseases.

It will take at least a day before the scientists can grow the virus and start to characterize it. And it could take up to a week for the lab to get definitive results. It's also possible the scientists might never be able to get a clear reading from the sample to determine what strain of the virus it is, said Clark.

He said no decision has been made on whether to hold a cull and a decision will not be made until more is known about the infected duck.

In the meantime, the agency is looking through records at the infected farm to see who has come and gone in the past 21 days. That will help inspectors figure out where the virus may have come from and where it may potentially go.

The flock at the farm was kept outside, but was recently moved indoors, said Dr. Ron Lewis, the chief veterinarian of B.C. None of the other poultry on the farm are sick.

The infected duck was pulled off the processing line for inspection, but for reasons unrelated to avian flu. As a result of increased surveillance, the duck was also tested for the flu virus.

Source: Canadian Press

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