Flu the Coop

Thursday, 13 October 2005

I'm not a Doctor, nor a World Health Official, but I do play a Reporter on the Internet.

It seems there is a lot of premature hype and panic about Bird Flu. At my (long suffering) Wife's pharmacy here on the edge of the ISOLATED world, they are filling prescriptions for Tamilflu, the only known anti-viral medicine which seems to have any effect. WTF??? What good is it going to do now to waste the medication when there aren't any reported cases around, or even that many world wide?

Another thing has got me thinking. They seem to be doing a lot of culling of birds. Any birds from the infected areas. When and if the Pandemic strikes will all domesticated fowl be slaughtered? What diversity will we be left with?

It seems to me that many of the birds they are culling live in cramped, dirty conditions. It is a wonder they aren't infested with other things. I know that wild birds are supposed to carry the Virus in them and spread the flu through contaminating water supplies, or intermingling with cooped up domestic flocks. So doesn't the answer seem pretty obvious to help minimize the chances of spreading the disease??

Begin by sterilizing water supplies which are used for domestic, commercial poultry. Chlorination would work, if necessary. A form of pasturization would be another option. Get rid of filthy situations where birds stand in, or breath in air contaminated by their own feces--hmmm seems a no-brainer, that. If you let your chickens roam around, find some way of keeping them from wild fowl--a net over their yard, or pen or something. Don't let them roam aimlessly eating whatever--it's not that hard. . . .

To help stop the spread of the flu I think there are a few things we can do ourselves--BUY LOCAL, and ORGANIC. Now I'm not saying that organically raised, free range chickens will not be affected. BUT. . . .if the birds are well looked after, and have plenty of room and fresh air and their immune systems are strong naturally they will be less likely to catch the virus in the first place. Also they won't be standing in tons of their own crap--in fact if their crap is allowed to dissipate naturally and not dry up and become inhalable dust there is another link in the chain removed. Free Range fowl will have to be looked after a bit more--some way to keep them from mingling with wild fowl, and a pure source of fresh, uncontaminated water-but that's easy: many Organic Chicken Farmers use what is called a chicken tractor--a cage which is big enough for a minimim number of fowl, which can be moved around daily so the chickens always have fresh ground and are isolated from other birds. Not practical for large scale farming, but perfect for local and medium size farms.

LOCAL--part of the problem of the spread of the Avian Flu has to do with Transportation. Shipping diseased chickens across the country to slaughter houses, or trucks going from farm to farm collecting chickens for slaughter is spreading the disease. Yeah, I know--wild fowl fly around and migrate too, but we can fence them out. It's the mass market machine of shipping and factory farming that could aid the spread of sickness.

Buying local may well be a key factor in keeping the spread of the Flu to a minimum. FInd a farm which raises chickens in your area--or 100 mile radius, which ever comes first. Check them out. Are their chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys healthy? Good. Are they standing in their own crap? Does the place smell like a waste dump? Don't buy from them. Find, or inquire of others, a farm that has a good reputation and treats their birds like food and not some cash crop. Ask the locals now what they are going to do to prevent or help stem the tide of Avian Flu. If they have a plan and it is sensible, give them your money and tuck in to some roast, poached, fried, or grilled birds. A smart, sensible plan now amid the early panic will help people keep their heads and keep poultry on our tables.