Bird flu found in local turkey flock

The Department of Agriculture announced the news this afternoon.

The Department of Agriculture has confirmed that Avian Influenza H5N1 has been found in a local turkey flock after testing.

Samples from a turkey flock in Co. Monaghan returned positive readings.

In a statement to The Anglo-Celt this afternoon, the Department said restriction zones are being set up around the area, with additional movement control and surveillance measures will be put in place.

A protection zone of at least 3km radius from the infected holding is bring put in place, along with a surveillance zone of at least 10km radius.

A census of all holdings within those areas will be conducted and procedures put in place to control movements of live poultry, other captive birds, hatching and table eggs, used litter, manure and slurry from poultry holdings.

Highly pathogenic Avian Influenza H5N1 has already been confirmed in wild birds in a number of counties across the country in recent weeks, including in Galway, Limerick, Offaly, Donegal, Roscommon, Tipperary, Wexford and Waterford.

The Health Protection Surveillance Centre has confirmed that although the H5N1 subtype can cause serious disease in poultry and other birds, no human infections with this virus have been reported in Europe and therefore risk to humans is considered to be very low.

The Department says despite this, members of the public are advised not to handle sick or dead wild birds and to report sick of dead wild birds to the Regional Veterinary Office or contact the Department’s disease hotline on 01 492 8026.

An early warning system is in place with Birdwatch Ireland, the National Parks and Wildlife Service and the National Association of Regional Game Councils with regard to surveillance for signs of disease in wild birds.

Poultry flock owners should remain vigilant for any signs of disease in their flocks, maintain strict biosecurity measures and report any disease suspicion to their nearest Department Regional Veterinary Office.

The Department reinforces the need for vigilance and biosecurity and advises strict adherence to the precautionary measures against avian influenza (bird flu) recently introduced in regulations under the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013.

These Regulations require specific biosecurity measures to be implemented by the keepers of all poultry (and other captive bird) flocks, irrespective of size, to help mitigate the risk of the virus and additional enhanced biosecurity measures that must be implemented in flocks of 500 birds or more.

To further mitigate the risk of spread within the poultry sector, the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue TD, has made regulations under the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013 requiring flock keepers to confine all poultry and captive birds in their possession or under their control in a secure building, to which wild birds or other animals do not have access, and to apply particular bio-security measures.

The Regulations, entitled Avian Influenza (Precautionary Confinement of Birds) Regulations 2021, provide for precautionary measures, against avian influenza (bird flu) will come into force on 22nd November.

The Department says it continues to closely monitor and assess the disease situation and is in regular contact with industry stakeholders and colleagues in Northern Ireland.