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Chickens with Low Pathogenic Strain of Influenza in Windowless Sheds*
Exempt from Compulsory Slaughter
| The Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza Infection Countermeasures Headquarters, which met on August 22, decided that, providing certain conditions are met, it was not necessary to slaughter chickens having positive antibody if raised in windowless sheds isolated from outside world and also that their eggs could be shipped to markets. The two main conditions to be fulfilled are that
i) virus isolation tests are conducted at regular interval of time and, ii) a control system is thoroughly under operation to prevent spread of virus outside the farm |
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including
changing of workers' clothes when going from one shed to another. Hitherto, it had been the policy of MAFF to slaughter all the chickens on a poultry farm if a chicken having positive antibody was found.
However, if virus is detected from a bird in windowless shed as well as from a bird in an open shed, all the birds shall be slaughtered as in the past.
In the meantime, the Domestic Fowl Disease Subcommittee, on September 2, discussed possible countermeasures to take against the avian flu of low pathogenicity breaking out since June 2005 in Ibaraki and some other prefectures, and examined what kind of disease prevention guidelines should be put in place that is fit to the characteristics of low pathogenic strain of the flu.
Also, the subcommittee publicized its viewpoint that efforts should continue to identify routes of infection without excluding any possibility, because a possibility of artificial routes such as vaccination could not be declined as a cause of the series of outbreaks at this time.
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Windowless Chicken Shed
A closed type shed with a minimum number of windows and doors to shut off airs from outside. Inside temperature and moisture are controlled by sensor-equipped atmosphere control facility, and lighting is also artificially controlled. |
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