Poll

How Worried Are You About Avian Flu

Terrified
0 (0%)
Concerned
2 (16.7%)
Not too worried
3 (25%)
Unconcerned
7 (58.3%)

Total Members Voted: 11

Voting closed: April 16, 2006, 12:17


Avian Flu

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John

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« on: April 06, 2006, 12:17 »
With the news that  a swan has been found dead with it in Scotland I was wondering how concerned poultry keepers are about it.

I must admit I'm more worried about the reaction of others than actually catching something from a chicken.
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olde9856

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Avian Flu
« Reply #1 on: April 06, 2006, 15:02 »
Cant say it bothers me particularly. More people die every year in the UK from ordinary flu that have died EVER from Bird flu in the world!! So unless there is something we are not being told I cant see what the fuss is about

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John

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« Reply #2 on: April 06, 2006, 15:16 »
My real concern is the blessed government over-reacting and running round killing domestic poultry when the disease is spread by wild birds.
I can see the concern for commercial poultry keepers with thousands of birds in close contact, but even there it isn't going to be spread by those birds.
But the media have really enjoyed hyping this up - remember we were all going to die of SARS?

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John

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« Reply #3 on: April 07, 2006, 10:13 »
Well watching the news last night where they confirmed the 'deadly' H5N1 virus was in the swan in Scotland the follow up was interesting.

People are cancelling their holidays to the area , the newspapers had it on the front page with advice not to panic and some scientist had calculated the chances of catching it in the UK were less than that of winning the lottery.

So, the press are doing a Corporal Jones (Dad's Army) - running up and down crying out 'Don't Panic' - a better method to generate panic is hardly known.

People are so pathetic that they cancel their holiday because of unreasoned fear.

And to reassure them they use the lottery comparison. How many people buy a ticket each week in the hope of winning? Incidentally - if you want to gamble you stand more chance with a pin and the copy of the racing times!

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Heather_S

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« Reply #4 on: April 07, 2006, 22:39 »
Well I could see it if they were going specifically to that town or in the exact area that is in the watch zone... although I have to admit, my mother told me to not play with dead animals or touch living ones because of the normal amount of diseases they all carry so it's common sense drilled into me.
wistfully hoping to one day be mostly organic gardener in North London.

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John

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« Reply #5 on: April 07, 2006, 23:19 »
I agree playing with corpses isn't the best thing, despite being an Alice Cooper fan.

Seriously,, I'm really bothered by the government reaction. I can't see establishing zones and talk of culls is relevant. Yes they need to be vigilant and maybe outdoor flocks of poultry will need to come under cover but there is no real prospect of poultry flocks passing it to other flocks unless they free range into each other.

If I'm wrong - tell me :)

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Heather_S

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« Reply #6 on: April 08, 2006, 00:13 »
I hadn't heard of any culls at this stage for this real life case. All they're doing is checking out(re: testing dead ones found) all the wildfowl/birds in the area and telling farmers in that area to keep their flocks inside or away from contact with wild birds if they can't be kept inside.
I know they were making noises before this about possible culls etc etc.

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twysted1

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Avian Flu
« Reply #7 on: April 08, 2006, 21:53 »
Quote from: "john"
I agree playing with corpses isn't the best thing, despite being an Alice Cooper fan


there is nothing wrong with playing with corpses. i like to collect road kill and friends passed on pets then prepare the skeletons and mount them. at the moment i am doing a hedgehog and a friends pet rat. i am also a body piercer and i usually follow the same sterile procedures with dead animals as i do with customers because a lot of animals carry TB and the like so i don't take any risks. i personally am not in the least bit concerned about H5N1 when there are real worries like MRSA in our hospitals.

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John

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« Reply #8 on: April 08, 2006, 22:49 »
Quote from: "twysted1"
i personally am not in the least bit concerned about H5N1 when there are real worries like MRSA in our hospitals.

That's a pretty sensible attitude - the press had a field day with the possibility that H5N1 would mutate into a human to human virus and be worse than Spanish Flu - forgetting that mutation may attenuate the effect and this virus seems less likely to mutate than many found in pigs - which filled their columns for a few weeks.
So now people, displaying that intelligence for which the human race is famed, think chickens = death!
I've heard of people taking pet chooks and giving them away. Crazy is the word.

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kooringa

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« Reply #9 on: April 11, 2006, 22:39 »
I am not concerned - and after voting was glad to see that there are a lot of sensible people around who agree.

If you read the facts rather than the papers then there is no need to panic
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John

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« Reply #10 on: April 11, 2006, 23:19 »
I heard that this virus has been in the UK before - in the 1950s on the radio today and they weren't bothered then.

This monster plague has killed less people in 3 years worldwide than cars kill every year in the UK.  You don't see the papers full of 'Killer Cars stalking the streets'

People are influenced by the media and the fact is that most journalists are looking for a story rather than the facts. Killer plagues make great science fiction .

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flowerofshona

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Avian Flu
« Reply #11 on: April 12, 2006, 09:10 »
What gets me is the fact that is in WILD birds and there is no way of stopping there movements so what is the point of  all the 'restriction areas' are they giving the wild birds leaflets telling them where not to go ?????
I was thinking of getting some bantams but i have decided to let it all die down before i do more for the sake of my neighbours fears.

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John

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« Reply #12 on: April 12, 2006, 09:42 »
Have you not heard of the 'Avian Identity Cards Bill (2006) ? :)

I've seen the allotment site go from all for it to 'we'll all die!!!' - I'm afraid most people are taking their lead from the press.  Hopefully, this will become a non-story soon enough.

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becky

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« Reply #13 on: April 13, 2006, 20:02 »
Hi there, Sorry to jump into this conversation, but I just have to say something on this subject as I love my chooks, and really don't want anything bad to happen to them!
  Firstly, I am sick to death of the media "scare mongering", it seems that every little piece of information regarding avian influenza, has been hyped up, it is funny that the media only use the information that "sells"! Heaven forbid that they give a fair representation of the state of things in the world.  :evil: GGGrrrrrrrrrr, it makes me mad!
  Secondly, the bird that was found in Scotland, was found, headless, in the water. Is it too crazy to wonder whether the bird died over the water, then floated in shore? The headless thing is an issue, as the type of swan determines whether or not it was a migratory bird or not. If it were a Mute swan, they don't migrate, thus the chances of avian flu finally reaching the U.K, is increased.
  Thirdly, wild birds die everyday! It doesn't neccesarily mean that they have died of avian flu, but because of that wonderfull thing called "the media", people will panic if their cat brings in a robin it just pounced on.
  And lastly, I am really fed up with people calling avian flu, "chicken flu", chickens don't just get avian flu, the minute it hits the country that they live in. They have to be infected, from another bird, or it's droppings. Chickens need a bit of a break here, if their owners are responsable, and can do everything they can to prevent thier birds getting infected, the chances are, their birds won't even come close to getting avian flu.
  I just thought of something else. Weren't we all due to die of the Sarrs virus, and wasn't every electrical device going to crash in 2000? Again, the magic of the media. God, I have got all hot and bothered now, I'd better prick out some seedlings to calm down!
Peas out!

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John

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« Reply #14 on: April 13, 2006, 23:16 »
Becky, don't apologise for jumping in on the forum - that's what it is here for :)
I agree 100% with what you said.

Unfortunately there are many many people who lap up the news iwithout engaging their brain.  I can't even blame the press. What headline grabs you more.
a) Very slight risk to human health from rare bird disease
b) We're all going to die from new chicken plague

The first week we were on the Isle of Man the headline in the paper was...
Sheep falls into Ramsey Harbour. Can't quite see that in the Daily Mail



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