Avian influenza found in South Carolina

[NatJ]

This was going to be my suggestion as well. I believe this is called "solarizing"; we did it to a decently-sized piece of our land to KO various weed, grass, and other plants so we could turn it into a pollinator meadow.

Pray for sunlight and lots of it!

Solarizing usually means to heat something high enough to kill weeds and weed seeds.

Since that poster would like to keep the grass alive, I am not suggesting solarizing the area.

I am just suggesting to make it a bit warmer, like a greenhouse, to speed up the rate at which AI dies off.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Yes they may be broad but I would bet they do NOT expect resistance. They may eventually win however if the vast majority of backyard flock owners roll over because they get "intimidated" a refusal (or better yet a delay...then a refusal) could either put a big monkey wrench in their plans or maybe get the issue shelved entirely if they have a ton of flocks to check within a 5 mile radius.

Plus according to this article it is a lot easier for them to justify a warrant-less search for commercial farms/businesses than it is on private property. Regardless I won't be intimidated by an "authoritative tone of voice". If they show up with an escort from the Sheriff's department I will give in but not until then.

Plus as mentioned buying a few days of delay can make all the difference with snap tests.

https://law.justia.com/constitution...hes-and-inspections-in-noncriminal-cases.html

Again, I'm not offering Legal advice, and I'm NOT a Lawyer. Politically, I lean little "L" libertarian. I believe the linked article on generalized search and seizure law is almost entirely irrelevant to this situation, from a legal perspective, because in involves a declared health emergency in a commercial livestock population.

I will not be following your recommended course of conduct in my own State.

You do you.

 

[Disheygirl]

Does anyone know which flocks are being culled? Are they flocks that test positive for H5 or only H5N1? The former shows mild or no disease (per the USDA - Case Definition of Avian Influenza from March 2022); the latter is almost always fatal. It would be horrible if they had a PCR test that didn't distinguish between H5 and the subtype and were killing birds "just in case". Secondarily, confirming positive H5N1 is not a simple test, whereas presumed positive can be "suspect positive" (so, not much proof).

I hope they are only culling confirmed H5N1, because even in the infographics, they include H5 and that's incredibly misleading.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Does anyone know which flocks are being culled? Are they flocks that test positive for H5 or only H5N1? The former shows mild or no disease (per the USDA - Case Definition of Avian Influenza from March 2022); the latter is almost always fatal. It would be horrible if they had a PCR test that didn't distinguish between H5 and the subtype and were killing birds "just in case". Secondarily, confirming positive H5N1 is not a simple test, whereas presumed positive can be "suspect positive" (so, not much proof).

I hope they are only culling confirmed H5N1, because even in the infographics, they include H5 and that's incredibly misleading.

There is no {plain} "H5". H5 is simply a description of one of the surface proteins (of 18 known variations) in a family of viruses, whose members potentially include H5N1, H5N2 ... H5N11, with clades and subclades further dividing and identifying them. The various HxNx being themselves part of the Influenza A group of viruses, as opposed to Influenza B, C, and D.

Culling decisions are technically State by State, though it appears to me they are culling all AI presenations, whether LPAI or HPAI, if in the H5 or H7 groups once identified in accordance with USDA APHIS recommendations. That is the plan, and has been for many years.

 

[Disheygirl]

There is no {plain} "H5". H5 is simply a description of one of the surface proteins (of 18 known variations) in a family of viruses, whose members potentially include H5N1, H5N2 ... H5N11, with clades and subclades further dividing and identifying them. The various HxNx being themselves part of the Influenza A group of viruses, as opposed to Influenza B, C, and D.

Culling decisions are technically State by State, though it appears to me they are culling all AI presenations, whether LPAI or HPAI, if in the H5 or H7 groups once identified in accordance with USDA APHIS recommendations. That is the plan, and has been for many years.

Thank you for the correction - I interpreted it wrong when I read it.

This is a quote from the USDA article referenced above (so I’m not misleading, there is an exception to this which is the next sentence in the article and is related to a breed of bird with origins in Hong Kong):
“Subtypes H5 and H7 low pathogenic avian influenza (LPAI) have been demonstrated to have the potential to mutate to highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) after replication in non-host species such as gallinaceous birds; however, these highly pathogenic viruses typically do not persist in wild birds.“ Edit - I realized I hadn’t attached it. https://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/monitoring_surveillance/avian-influenza-case-definition.pdf

So where does someone find the data for “…has been demonstrated to have the potential”? That sounds awfully vague and noncommittal. Has it actually happened outside of a lab, and if so, where do we find the reports? I can’t find anything….

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Thank you for the correction - I interpreted it wrong when I read it.

This is a quote from the USDA article referenced above (so I’m not misleading, there is an exception to this which is the next sentence in the article and is related to a breed of bird with origins in Hong Kong):
“Subtypes H5 and H7 low pathogenic avian influenza (LPAI) have been demonstrated to have the potential to mutate to highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) after replication in non-host species such as gallinaceous birds; however, these highly pathogenic viruses typically do not persist in wild birds.“ Edit - I realized I hadn’t attached it. https://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/monitoring_surveillance/avian-influenza-case-definition.pdf

So where does someone find the data for “…has been demonstrated to have the potential”? That sounds awfully vague and noncommittal. Has it actually happened outside of a lab, and if so, where do we find the reports? I can’t find anything….

Well, its not like we can trust the evening news to report it correctly, they want to offer just enough info to satisfy a 5th grade education on the highlights, then move on to the next blurb - ever mindful of the adage, "if it bleeds, it leads". Because that drives viewership, which sells advertising.

/edit
and the USDA document you linked isn't written for the public at all - it assumes a level of specialization that the very vast majority of us potentially affected by the document simply don't have. The line you highlighted is gobbledegook to me at the moment, I'll unpack it eventually. It seems to say that LPAI is essentially constantly present in non-galliforms (chickens and game birds), but can become HPAI in chckens and game birds as the LPAI replicates in them, but if transfered back to the non-galliform, the HPAI variety of the virus rarely lasts - they don't become long term HPAI reserviors in the environment the way they are LPAI reserviors.

But I could be completely wrong in that interpretation.
/end edit

Still, you may be looking for something like this. Or this. Or this.

(I've not read these personally, but they seemed likely relevant.) My brain is mush tonight.

 

[Disheygirl]

Well, its not like we can trust the evening news to report it correctly, they want to offer just enough info to satisfy a 5th grade education on the highlights, then move on to the next blurb - ever mindful of the adage, "if it bleeds, it leads". Because that drives viewership, which sells advertising.

/edit
and the USDA document you linked isn't written for the public at all - it assumes a level of specialization that the very vast majority of us potentially affected by the document simply don't have. The line you highlighted is gobbledegook to me at the moment, I'll unpack it eventually. It seems to say that LPAI is essentially constantly present in non-galliforms (chickens and game birds), but can become HPAI in chckens and game birds as the LPAI replicates in them, but if transfered back to the non-galliform, the HPAI variety of the virus rarely lasts - they don't become long term HPAI reserviors in the environment the way they are LPAI reserviors.

But I could be completely wrong in that interpretation.
/end edit

Still, you may be looking for something like this. Or this. Or this.

(I've not read these personally, but they seemed likely relevant.) My brain is mush tonight.

So true about the news. It’s Sat - brains are allowed to be mush on the weekends. I’d love your opinion when you have a chance to read, and no hurry.

Two of the three links confirm that they don’t know much about the “how”. It just seems awfully bold that they (or maybe it’s really just the media) can fear monger based on hypothetical data. The third article had a sample size, but it wasn’t statistically valid. I can’t find a thing that validates their actions (but I’ll keep looking)…they can cull entire flocks based on…a guess? Or a handful of cases across millions of flocks? Scary. Another gross overreach of power by the lovely g-men.

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

We just lost 3 hens this am, they were fine yesterday and found dead in a locked up coop this am. We have taken them to UCDavis to be checked for bird flu. I’m so worried about the rest of my hens. I also have never had to deal with bird flu so if anyone has recommendations on cleaning the coop please let me know, I have not found much online. Everything is preventing it but not what to do once it hits your coop

I’m so sorry that you lost your birds, whatever the cause! Wasn’t HPAI just discovered in the Pacific flyway, but far north of you? I don’t think there have been reports in California yet, if that’s any consolation.

 

[raingarden]

The poultry keeper's responsibility to report suspect outbreaks. It's the responsibility of the agencies to do whatever is required to break the chain of infection, minimize economic losses and protect human health. Stay in your lane.

 

[MadGardener]

Personally I think living through Covid has given the general population a familiarity with viruses and terms used that is actually helpful to apply to HPAI. It seems like the first page of the study found two virus strains with the same genetic mutation. The text indicated there was no possibility of a new virus entering, and that it must have been mutation. Occam's Razor is useful, but not perfect and this is assumed to be a mutation. Like we saw with Delta. And then Omicron. Different viruses, but similar concepts.

I feel that I owe it to my local community to be very careful with this virus. As a leaning "l" libertarian I have more allegiance to the people I see daily than the authorities. If I suspect HPAI in my flock I will be contacting my state. I feel that if you choose not to comply, you have the utmost responsibility to contain the outbreak. If a commercial operation can't I don't see how a backyard keeer can. Just my thoughts and carefully weighed moral obligations.