MAIN MENU
EXOTIC NEWCASTLE LINKS:
Informacion para Proprietarios de Aves
State Veterinarians
Bayer Co on VND
USDA on END
CDFA on END
UC Davis on END
Aussies on END
Aussy Vet Plan
DailyBulletin.com
ProMed
Articles
Posts
Searches
California Farm Bureau Federation
National Ag Library
Agricola
Bad Bug Book
Newsgroups
General Links
McMurray Hatchery
Hatcheries Index
Palm Beach Fanciers
City Farmer Canada
Canada Org Grower
Virginia Co-op Ext
Sustainable Ag Orgs
Organic Trade Assn
Am Health, Nutrition
ATTRA
FDA
JOIN ChickenFeed at
Weather!
By NOAA
Webstuff
New WebSurfer?
Copy This Website
Submit a Link
Submit Feed Sources
Advertising
COLOR ME!
KIDS! Click here.
CONTACT
Email Us:
TractionPads
@Earthlink.net
Trouble?
Get your Car or Truck...UNSTUCK!
With
Lions Grip
Traction Pads tm
|
|
April 18, 2003
Cockfighting in Oklahoma May Shut Down;
Newcastle Disease in New Mexico and Texas
Click here for the whole Abilene Reporter article>>>http://www.reporter-news.com/abil/nw_state/
article/0,1874,ABIL_7974_1900541,00.html
OKLAHOMA CITY- The state's cockfighting industry may shut down its fighting pits because a deadly viral disease that kills chickens has been reported in two neighboring states.
Exotic Newcastle disease has been detected in three New Mexico and two Texas counties around El Paso, Texas.
U.S. Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman declared an extraordinary animal disease emergency last week and ordered a quarantine in the five counties.
The cockfighting industry has volunteered to close its pits for two or three weeks because of exotic Newcastle, said Burke Healey, [Oklahoma] state veterinarian.
....Exotic Newcastle was detected April 9 in an El Paso backyard flock.
March 22, 2003
From a post to the Exotic Newcastle Disease Group at Yahoo!Groups:
"Here are some numbers on how many locations have qualified for the home quarantine under the New Caged Bird Policy. I am glad to know so many people are taking biosecurity seriously enough to qualify....this is really good news. The most important thing any of can do is to help get the word out to all bird owners about END and biosecurity. The Task Force has proven their willingness to help us save birds if we are willing to follow the rules of biosecurity and I am very grateful."
As of 3/15:
Requested 170
Completed 124
Pending 43
Denied 3
There maybe others that did not get into the Information Management System. Also, there may be more that got denied, but because they were denied, they did not get into the system
March 14, 2003
"Test to foil terrorists may save poultry, too"
Daily Review.com
March 14, 2003
Extract from Article:
With a PCR test, McCready said, "We can find out whether the organisms are gone and can certify when we have a disease-free state."
The test spared 170,000 layer hens in Riverside County that USDA officials had slated for "depopulation" or euthanasia. The standard test, in which lab workers inject tissue of potentially infected birds into eggs and wait for the virus to multiply inside, showed the birds had a virus in the same family as exotic Newcastle.
"Everyone was all upset, saying, 'Hey, we've got Newcastle here,'" recalled Cutler, the rancher's vet. "They had already quarantined the place and they were looking toward depopulating. I said, 'Hey, wait, let's look at the real-time PCR.'"
Tissue samples were flown to Davis and tested in Hietala's lab. The results showed the presence of a nonvirulent vaccine strain, as Cutler suspected, not exotic Newcastle disease.
"Within four hours, we knew it wasn't exotic Newcastle disease," Cutler said.
The test itself costs about $7.50 to perform. Cutler figures it saved the federal government about $850,000 in payment to the rancher for his birds.
March 11, 2003
"Ariz. chickens test negative for avian virus"
Reuters, 03.11.03, 6:48 PM ET
PHOENIX, (Reuters) - Chickens believed to have been stricken by the same deadly poultry virus that has killed more than 3 million birds in three Western states died instead from a respiratory disease, Arizona agriculture department officials said Tuesday.
Tests revealed that 20 young chickens that died two weeks ago in Waddell, Ariz., did not have Exotic Newcastle disease as was first feared, said Rae Chornenky, a department spokeswoman. The results were confirmed at two federal laboratories.
Click here for entire article in Forbes.com
February, 2003
ChickenFeed on END
We promote the ownership of small, near-urban flocks of poultry. Before any conclusions are drawn about how this outbreak is spreading, all evidence must be made available. Since small near-urban flocks are being targeted and blamed as being a main cause of this spread, I feel it is quite important to look at the opposite side of the coin.
The potential for the disease to spread through commercial production practices is great, since commercial poultry yards concentrate all forms of poultry products, and create huge pools of material in which microorganisms can grow. Mixing techniques for poultry products now operate on a massive scale, regularly incorporating chicken parts (feathers, processed sludge from slaughter houses) back into the feed, so a small amount of organism might be mixed and distributed through a huge amount of poultry feed material. One eye-witness resident in Norco, posted that the only farms in her area to contract the disease were those who let the feed trucks in. Ostensibly, this points to poor biosecurity measures regarding tires, shoes, etc. But mightn't it also point to the feed that those trucks was delivering?
Where is there a discussion of the feeds --- their contents, tests done on them, correspondence patterns with incidences of END, how the feed might transport the virus or reasons why feeds are not suspect --- where are these discussions? Australia, a country with extensive social programs and organization, has had battles with VND (=END) outbreaks in the past, and reports that contaminated feeds were suspected of contributing to them. There were scientific grounds for that suspicion.
Before media-fanned flames of blame are placed squarely on all owners of backyard flocks, let all the evidence be presented. Trial by media is one kind of habit we cannot afford. Efforts to eradicate this deadly virus will proceed much more swiftly if the public is provided with all the facts and has confidence that they are being treated fairly and honestly.
----KS for ChickenFeed
What can you do to be safe? Consider three questions: (1) How is this disease spreading? (2) How can I prevent it coming to my poultry? (3) How can I prevent the official destruction of my poultry?
1. To find out how it is spreading, read the sources below, especially Bayer Company's site, and join Yahoo!Groups which are devoted to "Newcastle Disease" to learn directly from the citizens of the affected counties about what they see with their own eyes.
2. To prevent the disease coming to your poultry, if you are anywhere near the affected areas, begin the bio-security measures outlined below, and modify them as you learn more. There is a big scare about airborne virus; but apparently it is "over blown", though possibly still needs to be considered if you are in real close proximity to infected flocks or if there's high winds. Get the correct disinfectants: ask your feed store for Nolvasan or others. I personally would also do this: Order feeds from distant sources, well out of the affected areas. Since feathers are very light and possibly very easy to ship long distances, I would make sure my feed does not contain feathers, no matter where the feed is from, until other information is forthcoming. Inquire as to whether your feed contains poultry products, and insist on feed that does not.
The CDFA Task Force expressed concern that vaccines exaggerate the problem, by masking symptoms, thereby allowing END to grow in a flock for quite awhile before anything shows up. However, a recent conference at UC Davis reached a consensus that vaccines offer a very great protection (this email and contact information will be posted in full if its author, a UC Davis professor or employee, agrees).
The Bayer Company's treatise explains how to keep special, non-inoculated birds in your flock that will succumb to any END virus that happens to be in your flock, thereby alerting you to the existence of the virus in your flock.
3. Your best chances of preventing the official destruction of your poultry seem to be to visibly demonstrate and document the strictest bio-security plan you are capable of, following the advice below, and that which you learn for yourself by reading the sources below, and by doing everything you can to avoid unnecessary destruction of your birds. You must learn how to determine that your flock is not a carrier and could not become a carrier where it is located. Read the
Bayer Company's Info for some technical specifics in how to test for ND.
The CDFA Task Force originally told us that caged birds were in no danger and were not a concern. Perhaps caging your birds securely for the duration of this epidemic, along with biosecurity, would satisfy the inspectors. Learn about the right to see a court order before letting euthanization happen. Get in touch with the Yahoo!Groups Newcastle Disease groups. Go to Yahoo!Groups and search for "Newcastle Disease" --- join the groups that look active and/or effective (over-active groups might not be as effective as small ones, due to the difficulty of reading dozens and dozens of posts each day).
Sources of Information Online
Click here for Bayer Company's VND Info which is an academic treatise on the disease, and very thorough. This is possibly one of the best sources of information available. An example of the information it contains:
Once introduced into poultry, the virus spreads farm-to-farm by the movement of inapparently infected poultry species; on contaminated objects such as boots, sacks, egg trays, and crates; or by flies (5) or mice. Reports from England (11) that the virus can be wind-borne under certain conditions should be considered even though there was no evidence of airborne transmission between premises with the virus that caused the 1971 outbreak in California. Free-flying wild birds apparently had no role in the spread of VND during that outbreak (16).
Click here for the US Dept of Agriculture VND/END website
Click here for U. C. Davis Bio-Security Page in English y Espagnol
Click here for articles in the DailyBulletin.com, an online newssource from Ontario, California, for ongoing reporting of the destruction of small holdings, even peoples' pets in their own homes.
Click here for CDFA Newcastle Disease Information Page (California Dept of Food and Agriculture), the agency responsible for controlling the outbreak. Or phone the CDFA Exotic Newcastle Disease Hotline at (800) 491-1899.
Click here for CDFA policy on Biosecurity for Caged Birds in Enclosed Structures, which enables owners of pet birds in indoor cages to direct their own biosecurity and save their birds Note: this is in PDF format --- you must get Adobe Acrobat Reader (free) to view this file
Click here for the Australian CISRO Newcastle Disease Information Sheet
, which delineates the disease's characteristics in a very thorough way.
From the End-birds@YahooGroups.com group, 2/11/03:
"Lysol does kill END. Lysol is also dangerous to cats and I would not use it
around birds. In any given situation where one of us is using good
biosecurity, I cannot think of one good use for Lysol, unless you are
awaiting a shipment of Nolvasan or other disinfectant(s) to arrive. It would
certainly cost a LOT more..."
Bio-Security Tips for Poultry Owners (apply as necessary)
Also see the UC Davis BioSecurity Page
From the
Kingsport Times News, Tennessee (we chose them for objectivity)
. Permit only essential workers and vehicles on the premises.
. Provide clean clothing and disinfection facilities for employees.
. Clean and disinfect vehicles (including tires and undercarriages)
entering and leaving the premises.
. Avoid visiting other poultry operations.
. Maintain an "all-in, all-out" philosophy of flock management with single
age flocks.
. Control the movement of all poultry and products from farm to farm. [NOTE: This includes feed!]
. Do not "skim" mature birds for sale to live-poultry markets.
. Clean and disinfect poultry houses between each lot of birds.
. Do not keep pet birds on the farm. Do not hire employees who own pet
birds.
. Exclude service personnel who may have been in contact with other poultry
operations within 24 hours.
. Protect flocks from wild birds that may try to nest in poultry houses or
feed with domesticated birds.
. Control movements associated with the disposal and handling of bird
carcasses, litter and manure.
. Take diseased birds to a diagnostic laboratory for examination.
For pet bird and backyard poultry enthusiasts, the department recommends
the following:
. Request certification from suppliers that birds are legally imported or
are of U.S. stock, are healthy prior to shipment, and will be transported
in new or thoroughly disinfected containers.
. Maintain records of all sales and shipments of flocks.
. Isolate all newly purchased birds for at least 30 days.
. Restrict movement of personnel between new and old birds.
------------end of article----------
There appears to be a simultaneous outbreak now in Sydney, Australia,
Chickens suffering from Newcastle Disease, Australia
A second occurrence in Sydney, Australia has been reported online, November 13, 2002. The government article is at http://www.agric.nsw.gov.au/reader/16009. We have not found any sources that are comparing the virus organisms of the two outbreaks (nor even acknowledging that it might be an international problem), though both regions report that their outbreaks involve the especially-deadly form of Newcastle Disease.
Newcastle Disease is caused by a virus that occurs in all parts of an infected bird: the droppings, the breath, the eggs, anything. An infected bird can pass the disease onto another bird by being in close proximity with that bird, or by the "victim" pecking or contacting some product of the infected bird. The virus dies when the substrate it is in dries up, but if in damp soil, etc., it can stay alive and dangerous for days or weeks. It is easy to see how a densely-populated poultry yard can quickly fall prey to this disease if just one infected bird is introduced.
Australian sources (see links in the right-hand column) are especially informative about Newcastle Disease. The Australian CSIRO source describes it thus:
"Transmission of infection is mainly by direct contact with diseased or carrier birds. The virus may also be transmitted by objects such as chicken crates, egg cartons, contaminated feed, trucks, dust, feathers and clothing. Birds can be infected by inhalation of aerosols, ingestion or wind born transmission." And,
"In 1930 and 1932 there were outbreaks of virulent Newcastle disease in the suburbs of Melbourne. The first is thought to have resulted from swill feeding of ship's garbage containing viscera of Newcastle disease virus infected birds. The second is thought to have arisen from poultry products frozen during the first epidemic."
Unfortunately, the vaccine against ND, as it is used, may be hindering, not helping, the problem. Birds can be infectious with ND without exhibiting much in the way of signs. Vaccinated home-birds can carry the disease for a long time without anyone knowing it, since the vaccine can mask the Exotic form of the disease without getting rid of it, if I understand the explanation I received from the CDFA hotline.
But in light of the Australian information, that feed was suspected in the 1930 virulent form of the outbreak, and is always a potential vector for the disease, ChickenFeed poses these questions: (1) Has it been ruled out that California's ND epidemic might be being spread through contaminated feed? (2) What is the figure for the number of birds that have tested positive for ND in this outbreak?
~~~ ChickenFeed
Comments appreciated:
Take as much room as you like
Your email address, please
| |
Bayer Co's Treatise on VND
Useful USDA site for END information
From the
Daily Bulletin
Ontario, Calif:
Pet owners protest tactics used in battle against exotic Newcastle, 1/28/03
Norco bird owner wins reprieve;
Official agrees to personally supervise testing for Newcastle disease, 1/31/03
Newcastle: Affliction breeding suburban brawl; Eradication efforts stir anger in Norco, 1/30/03
Residents criticize disease task force; Owners say state officials are killing healthy birds, 1/24/03
Articles from
CSIRO, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, Australia
Newcastle Disease Information Sheet
Australian Veterinary Emergency Plan for END
Calif Dept of Food & Agriculture
Newcastle Disease Page
Definitions
Newcastle Disease Terms
END: Exotic Newcastle Disease, the popular term for the current outbreak of Velogenic Newcastle Disease, with "Exotic" denoting the fact that VND is considered to be exotic to, i.e., not native to, the United States
endemic: belonging or native to a particular people or country
exotic: introduced from another country; not native to the place where found
inapparently: non-visibly
lesion: an abnormal change in structure of an organ or part, due to injury or disease
NDV's: Newcastle Disease Viruses, which occur as three pathotypes: lentogenic, mesogenic, and velogenic, reflecting increasing levels of virulence (Bayer Co.)
neurologic: having to do with the nervous system; "birds surviving 12 to 14 days generally do not die but may display permanent paralysis and other neurologic signs" (Bayer Co.)
neurotropic: attracted to or acting upon the nervous system; the neurotropic strains of VND act upon the nervous system
pathognomonic: distinctively characteristic of a particular disease
torticollis:a more or less fixed twisting of the neck resulting in an abnormal carriage of the head
-tropic: attracted to or acting upon (something specified), as in "neurotropic"
Velogenic Newcastle Disease: see VND below
virulent: marked by a rapid, severe, and malignant course
viscera: internal organs of the body, especially in the trunk
viscerotropic: attracted to or acting upon the viscera, the bodily organs; the viscerotropic strains of VND act upon the bodily organs
VND: Velogenic Newcastle Disease, "this is the most severe form of Newcastle disease and is likely the most serious disease of poultry throughout the world. In chickens it is characterized by lesions in the brain or gastrointestinal tract, morbidity rates near 100 percent, and mortality rates as high as 90 percent in susceptible chickens. Neurologic signs or severe depression are the most obvious clinical sign, and some nonvaccinated birds may be found dead with no detected sign of prior illness." "The most virulent (velogenic) isolates are further subdivided into neurotropic and viscerotropic types" (Bayer Co.)
VVND: the viscerotropic strains of VND
Types of Feed
Mash: a blend of several feed ingredients, ground to a small size but not to a powder
Pellets: small kernels of compressed mash, causing birds to eat the whole blend, not pick and choose
Crumbles: pellets broken up into smaller pieces
Starter: a blend of feed for chicks and growing birds, usually in the form of mash; approximately the same as "Grower"; can be replaced with "adult" food as soon as chicks go for it, somewhere between 4 and 8 weeks of age
Grower: approximately the same as "Starter"
Layer: feed blend for chickens that are laying eggs, having extra calcium and protein added
Broiler: feed blend for chickens that are growing as fast as possible, in order to be harvested for meat as early as possible
Scratch: whole grains fed separately to chickens, usually scattered on the ground or litter of the coop; usually a mixture of grains, such as wheat, rye, oats, etc. (corn/maize must be cracked before using as scratch grain)
Feed Ingredients
Concentrate: a blend of protein-rich foods, plus any other nutrients desired; usually fed together with a grain ration
Grit: angular, hard crushed rock, preferably from granite, used by the chickens in place of "teeth" --- seashells and bone CANNOT substitute for grit; for confinded birds, grit should be offered several times a month at least; it should be of the right size for the age of the bird (see Baby Chicks page); birds allowed to free range don't need to be offered grit -- they find their own ideal sizes and types to suit themselves
Corn: American term meaning maize corn, or "corn on the cob" (in England "corn" means what grain means in the US, that is, all food grains)
Grain: American term meaning any small, hard seeds, especially grass-family seeds (called corn in England); provides energy, B vitamins, phosphorus, and the whole grains are a fair source of protein, too
Bran: the outer coating of a kernel of grain; extremely high in silicon, which slows down its decomposing in the soil; cheap by-product of milling, often given away free by large mills
Germ: the embryo plant inside a kernel of grain; very nutritious and high in protein; wheat and rice germ (also called "rice polish") are a saleable by-product of milling
Middlings: an old milling term for the parts of the kernel that are milled off with the germ, and probably contain both the starch and bran (please email me if you have more specific information :-)
Calcium: provided by sea shells, crushed bone, and fresh or dried greens --- amounts need to be measured closely, if not free range; must be provided in higher quantities as soon as chickens begin to lay eggs
Protein: any food high in amino acids, used to build tissues; protein quality is determined by the "completeness" of the amino acid varieties in the food source; all meats, eggs of all kinds, milk, cheese, nuts, seed germs, and soy beans are high protein sources
Amino acid: a molecule that is one building block of protein; there are many different amino acids, most of which can be manufactured in the body; the few that cannot must be supplied by foods, and are called "Essential Amino Acids"; a food that supplies all 8 essential amino acids is called "complete"
Vitamins: an old, general term meaning "life-giving"; a chemical found in nature or made by man to imitate natural ones; new vitamins, and new uses for known vitamins, are always being discovered
Minerals: non-life-created chemicals found in nature; these and vitamins can be added to dietary regimens to improve health; sea water contains all the minerals of the earth, in their natural forms and safe amounts; "trace minerals" are those needed in relatively very tiny amounts, and can be highly toxic if these amounts are exceeded; "macro-minerals" are those needed in large amounts, such as calcium, phosphorous, and magnesium
Kelp: sea-weed, plants that grow in the sea; contains all the minerals of the earth; all kelp is edible, and can easily be dried and fed to chickens by clipping a sheaf of it to something in their area (also, this replaces any need to add salt to their rations)
Methods of Raising Poultry
Free range: ideally, not controlled by fences, able to get to fresh greens and insects; as commercially used, this term allows fences, with minimum amount of space per bird set by government agency definition
Pastured poultry: hens kept in movable, usually wheeled, pens, moved daily over fresh pasture, creating delicious meat and the very most nutritious eggs (and very fertile pastureland, too)
Organic: inspected by government agencies, organic food sources must not contain traces of harmful chemicals; the term as currently used does not insure that poultry has been raised in the best possible way, only that it has near zero harmful ingredients
Types of Chickens
Pullets: female chickens in their first year of lay, or prior to their first moult; female baby chicks
Hens: female chickens in their second year of lay, or after their first moult
Straight Run: a random mixture of male and female baby chicks, usually less expensive than only pullets
Cockerels: male baby chicks; male young domestic fowl
Rooster: adult male chicken, or adult male of other domestic or non-domestic fowl
Broilers: chickens raised to be eaten
Meat birds: old term for broilers
Layers: chickens raised to be egg-layers
Layer-Broiler: chickens raised to be both egg-layer and to be eaten
Bantam: a miniaturized chicken of any breed; most breeds have a regular-size and a bantam variety
Banty: same as Bantam
Get your Car or Truck...UNSTUCK!
With
Lions Grip
Traction Pads tm
|