Bird flu detected in 2 Pierce County backyard flocks. WA asks other owners to act now
An avian flu virus has been spreading across the United States in recent months, infecting birds in 36 states. On Tuesday, bird flu was detected in two noncommercial backyard flocks in Pierce County.
The Washington State Department of Agriculture on Wednesday asked bird owners to take measures to prevent contact between their animals and wild birds. Two cases of bird flu have been confirmed in wild birds in Washington state, and it has been detected in about 1,112 wild birds across the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
More than 37 million poultry have died from the disease. According to Bloomberg, the last time bird flu hit the U.S. was in 2015, when about 50 million animals died.
State and federal labs tested samples from the Pierce County flocks after their owners noticed an unusual number of sudden deaths and reported it to WSDA, according to a news release. Spokesperson Amber Betts said the flocks were made up of about 60 and 40 birds. One was a mixture of chickens and ducks and the other was made up of turkeys and peacocks.
“Avian influenza is here,” state veterinarian Amber Itle said in the news release. “Whether it has been confirmed in your county yet or not, you should be taking steps to protect your birds and prevent the spread of this virus which could wipe out your flock.”
The advisory comes days after the virus was detected in a flock of about 50 birds at a noncommercial farm in Pacific County. Bird flu was also found in a noncommercial flock of about 75 birds in Spokane County.
Avian influenza can be transmitted from wild birds to domestic birds through direct contact, fecal contamination, transmission through the air, environmental contamination, and shared water sources.
The state veterinarian said one step flock owners should take is to eliminate access to ponds or standing water on your property. She said owners should also separate different domestic species. Ducks and geese should be penned separately from chickens and turkeys.
Itle also advised flock owners to limit access to their farms, not share farm equipment with others and not share or sell eggs from backyard flocks. Eating cooked eggs doesn’t pose a health risk, but transferring eggs off-farm can spread the virus.
WSDA said there is not an immediate public health concern due to avian influenza. According to the CDC, one human in the U.S. has been infected in this outbreak. According to the government agency, only four human infections have been identified in the U.S. since 2002.
The premises of the Pierce County flocks where the virus was detected were quarantined, and all of the birds in the flock that had not already died from the virus were euthanized. In a news conference Friday, Itle said euthanasia was a humane option for them.
“When we’re thinking about animal welfare, personally, if I was a chicken, I might rather have a humane euthanasia than die,” Itle said. “Because it is such a virulent, highly pathogenic virus that, you know, these animals are suffering.”
Unusual deaths or illness among domestic birds should be reported to the WSDA Avian Health Program at 1-800-606-3056. Dead or sick wild birds can be reported to the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife using an online reporting tool or on its website, wdfw.wa.gov.
This story was originally published May 11, 2022 at 1:44 PM with the headline "Bird flu detected in 2 Pierce County backyard flocks. WA asks other owners to act now."
